A Summer To Remember
by bluebird24
Summary: During a dramatic summer, Peyton and Lucas become closer. Set after the second season finale.Also some Brathan and a little hint of Jaley. Now COMPLETED!
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own One Tree Hill or any of their characters.

* * *

**Chapter 1**

"Looks like it's just you and me, this summer," Lucas said.

Peyton could only nod her head. The sadness mixed with confusion and fear brought her to tears. Up until Lucas showed up at the beach that night, Peyton felt alone – her father was still gone, Nathan was leaving for camp, Haley was still on tour and Brooke had just moved across the country – they all left her alone to deal with a single lie that could tear her life apart.

Although he didn't know it yet, Lucas knew she needed him to be a friend; someone to be there for here and to comfort her; someone who she could lean on to and more importantly, someone who would be the one true constant thing in her life. So he invited her into his open arms.

Peyton clung on to him and he held her just as tight. They both needed comfort and each other. Neither of them wanted to let each other go because the last time they did, seasons had passed before they spoke again.

* * *

The next morning, Peyton woke up, from a good nights sleep, in the soft bed. As she sat up, she familiarized herself with her surroundings. A big yawn escaped her lips. She covered her mouth with her hand. As she did, she smelled a clean masculine scent from the grey hoody sweatshirt she was wearing. It made her smile.

Her feet landed on the floor when she heard her cell phone ring. Following the muffled ringing, she found the phone in her purse.

"Hello?"

"Good morning, P. Sawyer or is it good afternoon?"

The alarm clock on the bedside table read 12:15pm, which meant it was 9:15am in California.

"Since when has Brooke Davis ever been so chipper first thing in the morning?"

"Since she's still on Tree hill time…anyways I miss you so much. It sucks here…there's like no drama here,"

Peyton smirked, "You're dad hasn't seen your credit card bill, has he?"

"Haha, very funny. Besides that doesn't count…it happens every month,"

"Here's an idea – surprise your dad and stop shopping for a month. Oh, imagine the shock he'll be in when he gets the bill,"

"Are you kidding me? Stop shopping. As if…I'm still making up for lost times," The girls laughed at Brooke's addiction to shopping. "So anyways, I called you last night and you didn't pick up. What'd you do last night, Peyton? Or who did you do?"

"Brooke!"

"Come on Goldilocks, don't hold back on me. I need gossip,"

Peyton bit her thumb nervously as she remembered last night clearly. She knew it wasn't exactly the kind of gossip Brooke wanted to hear.

* * *

**Flashback**

_They had talked all night – or rather, Peyton had talked all night. Lucas just listened to her as she told him everything from her feelings about Jake leaving to the creepy instant messages she had been receiving. She also told him about Elizabeth – the woman claiming to be her mother. Peyton was hesitant at first, but she really needed someone to confide in because she knew she wouldn't be able to get through the summer alone. _

_The darkness of the water faded as the sun began to rise over the horizon. The sun lit the sky into a bright colourful mix of pinks and reds. The sounds of the waves crashing upon the shoreline finished off the setting. It was the first time Lucas and Peyton had ever seen the sun rise over the water. It was a sight that they would share together and remember forever. _

_Even though the rising sun brought on a new day to face, along with the troubles from yesterday, today was different. Today they would face whatever was to come, together - as it was the first day of a summer to remember. _

_Lucas was the first to break out of the trance. He stood up and brushed the sand off his shorts. He stretched his arms up over his head and let out a yawn. He let out a relaxing deep breath and looked back down at Peyton. _

_She gave him a weak smile, unsure of wanting to begin the day._

_He outstretched his hand, offering it to her. "Come on," he said showing a half smile. _

_She looked at him for a second. The softness in his eyes told her that she'd be ok as his outstretched hand told her that he'd be there for her no matter what. Peyton finally reached up and took his hand, ready to face the day. _

_Since Lucas had walked to the beach the night before, Peyton offered him a ride home. The ride to his house was quiet, probably because they were too tired to talk. But from the corner of her eye, Peyton could see Lucas staring at her. Peyton pulled up to his house and put her car in park. She glanced over at him and he was still looking at her as if he could see beyond her mask. Could he tell that she didn't want to be alone? That she wasn't ready to go home to an empty house?_

_Secretly she wanted to ask Lucas to stay with her, at least until her father came home or until her problems went away – which ever came first, but she was too stubborn to ask. _

_He began to open the car door when he turned back to face her, "Hey, do you want to come in? It's kinda lonely without my mom here,"_

_She tried to remain cool about it, but he saw the look of relief in her half smile, "Are you sure you want me to?"_

"_Yeah, why not? If you're hungry, we could have breakfast or if you're tired, you can crash in my room and I'll take the couch…" Peyton pretended to think about it, "Come on…I'll make my famous chocolate chip pancakes,"_

**End Flashback**_  
_

**

* * *

**

Brooke was still waiting on the line for Peyton's response. Peyton was about to tell Brooke, when there was a knock on the door.

"Honey? It's time to go for our spa treatment," Brooke's mother said as she poked her head in the door.

"Alright, I'll be there in a minute," Brooke watched her mother's head disappear behind the door. "Ugh, mother daughter bonding time. Her therapist told her she needed to spend more time with me. I told her to see a new shrink,"

"Hey, Peyton? You up yet?" Lucas knocked on the other side of the door.

Peyton quickly covered the mic on her phone, hoping that Brooke didn't hear anything. "Just a second," she called out to Lucas.

"What's going on, Peyton? Who are you talking to?" Brooke asked.

"Um, someone's at the door. I gotta go," Peyton quickly ended the call and jumped off the bed to answer the door.

She found a smirking Lucas on the other side, "Talking to yourself?"

"Nope, I was playing with your dinosaur dolls on your shelf," Peyton mocked back.

"They're not dolls…they're collectibles," he said defensively.

"Whatever you say…" The smell of bacon and pancakes wafted over from the kitchen.

Lucas saw Peyton's face light up at the smell of the food, "Hungry?"

"Starved!"

"Good, cause I made my chocolate chip pancakes like I promised and…whoa," Peyton hungrily pushed Lucas out of the doorway.

"Last one to the kitchen has to wash the dishes," she called out as she ran down the hallway.

"Hey, I did all the cooking…" it was no use - she was already in the kitchen.

"No dishes for me!" Peyton yelled out.

Lucas shook his head and laughed as he made his way to join her in the kitchen.

* * *

After breakfast, Lucas cleaned up as Peyton lounged comfortably full in the living room. Lucas was rinsing off the dishes when he heard a knock on the door. "Peyton?"

"Yeah, yeah…I got it," she got up off the couch and sauntered to the front door. When she opened the door, she was surprised to see Haley on the other side. Haley was just as surprised to see Peyton not because she was at Lucas's, but because she was in Lucas's pajama bottoms and sweatshirt.

Her tired eyes widened, "Peyton?"

Peyton couldn't help but feel angry with Haley. She was upset with Haley for leaving the way she did and for hurting Nathan so badly, "Oh, so you do remember my name,"

Haley wasn't really surprised at Peyton's attitude toward her but now wasn't the time to deal with it, "Um…is Lucas here? I need to talk to him…you probably want to hear it too,"

With one last questioning glare, Peyton finally called Lucas and let Haley inside.

* * *

The three of them were now in the living room. Peyton was seated on the couch while Lucas hugged Haley. "It's good to have you home, Hales," He pulled apart and saw a worried look on her face, "What's wrong?"

"Lucas, you might want to sit down,"

"Ok," Lucas took a seat beside Peyton on the couch.

Haley took a deep breath before she began, "Last night…"

* * *

**Flashback**

"_Hi," Haley softly said._

_The look of shock quickly faded from his face as he remembered. He remembered that his wife walked out on their marriage. "What are you doing here?"_

"_I…I came to see you,"_

"_Well, now you have and now you can go," he stepped back into the house and was about to close the door when he heard her._

"_Wait…please," _

"_No. I'm tired of waiting," Nathan said angrily. "When you left, I waited for you to call and when I asked you to come home, I waited. Don't you think I've waited long enough?"_

"_Nathan, I'm sorry. But you have to understand…" she pleaded with him to listen.  
_

"_Don't tell me I need to understand. Cause I do! I understand that you left because you were selfish. I understand that you didn't love me enough to stay!" He saw the tears streaming down her face, but he didn't care. She had hurt him and now he wanted to hurt her. "Just get out of here. There's nothing you can say or do that will change my mind cause I stopped loving you the day you left,"_

_The words slapped Haley in the face. She knew that she had hurt him, but didn't know how bad. Trying to save some dignity, Haley nodded and turned away. The light from inside the foyer was now gone as Nathan shut the door. _

_With his hand still on the door knob a single teardrop splashed on his hand. _

"_Nathan!" his mother called from upstairs. _

_Nathan heard footsteps running down the stairs towards him. "Nathan!"_

"_Mom? What's wrong?"_

_Haley was half way down the driveway when she heard footsteps running towards her. She turned around and saw Nathan followed by Deb. _

"_Nathan?"_

_Nathan didn't answer. He just made his way to the car. _

"_Haley? What are you doing here?" _

"_I…I came to see Nathan,"_

_Deb saw Haley's suitcases at her feet. Deep down Deb hoped that the two would work it out. Even though she was against the marriage, she knew Haley was good to Nathan and she brought out the best in him. "There's was fire at the dealership,"_

"_Oh my God. Was anyone hurt?"_

_Deb nodded her head, "Keith…Keith pulled Dan out of the fire. They're on their way to the hospital,"_


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks for the awesome reviews. I love getting them (hint, hint) and I'm glad that you like it so far. I think I'm going to pretty much stick to the plot lines in the show, but there may be a few minor changes. As for Peyton being angry with Haley, I just felt like Peyton would be upset with the way Haley left, (since Peyton does have people leaving issues) and that Peyton saw how Haley's decision affected Nathan. If there is anything that you like or don't like, just let me know...other than that, enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't OTH or any of the characters

* * *

**Chapter 2**

Lucas joined Haley on the porch as they watched Peyton's vintage car drive away. Even though she didn't want to leave, Peyton thought that it would be best if Lucas had some time alone and catch up with his long-time best friend.

* * *

**Flashback**

_Lucas walked Peyton to her car. "Are you sure you'll be ok?"_

_Peyton nodded, "Yeah, I can't hide at your house all summer. Besides, I'll probably stop by the hospital to see Nathan. You sure you don't want to come with me?"_

_Lucas shook his head, "Nah, after everything that happened with Dan, I'm the last person they want to see. Besides, I'll probably stop by Keith's, see how's he doing and if he still wants to talk to me,"_

"_He'll get over it. He just had a lot to deal with this past year he just needs time. Just don't give up on him,"_

"_Who? Keith or Nathan,"_

"_Both,"_

_Lucas nodded before he opened the car door for Peyton. "Let me know how he's doing?"_

"_I will," She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him into a comforting hug, "Don't worry, they'll come around Luke…I did,"_

**End Flashback

* * *

**

"So…you and Peyton…"

"Are becoming friends again," Lucas filled in Haley's blank. "We've been through a lot this year and now we're just getting things back on track,"

Haley nodded, "That's good. I'm glad, Luke. You guys deserve to be happy,"

"So do you,"

Haley was quiet for a moment, "I was…and now look where I am,"

"What do you mean?"

The brunette shook her wavy hair, "Nothing,"

"Hales…you can talk to me you know,"

"I know…it was just nothing,"

Lucas saw the sadness in her eyes but he didn't want to push her. He knew that she would talk when she was ready. Even though she looked different – more mature and feminine – she was still Haley James, his best friend.

* * *

After a quick shower and throwing on a clean t-shirt, Peyton made her way to the hospital to find Nathan. Lucky for her, she didn't have to deal with the nurses at the triage to track him down. 

"Guess you heard?" Nathan had seen her first. He had been sitting outside on a bench when he spotted Peyton's car pull in the parking lot. "Let me guess…Haley found you?"

Peyton shyly smiled, "Something like that," she sat down beside her friend and former beau. "How is he?"

"Still unconscious…but alive I guess,"

"You don't sound all that relieved,"

Nathan shrugged, "Should I be?"

Peyton shifted in her seat uncomfortably.

He laughed bitterly, "He's in there, clinging on to his life and here I am, his own son, confused about how to feel. I know he's my father and I should be there for him, but he made my life a living hell,"

"Sounds like someone else I know,"

"Huh?"

"Your brother,"

His eyes narrowed, "What brother? I don't have a brother," Nathan was still angry with Lucas for lying to him. Lucas kept on spying on Dan even when he promised Nathan that he would stop.

"What are you? Two years old?" she snapped, "Whether you like it or not, Lucas is still your brother. He always will be,"

"Maybe so, but doesn't mean that he has to be a part of my life,"

"That's bullshit and you know it Nathan,"

"He's nothing but a liar and a fraud. You and Brooke should know first hand," He said spitefully.

Peyton didn't flinch at his remark. She was used to fighting with him, "Will you get off your high horse? Lucas is human…he made a mistake and he's sorry. You know, when I let Lucas in my life for the first time, I was never happier. And the thing is, I didn't realize that until I pushed him away,"

"Well, good for you, but what does that have anything to do with me?"

Peyton calmed down, "Because I saw how much you changed when you finally accepted Lucas. And I don't want you to make the same mistake I did. Don't push him out of your life when you need him the most,"

"You know what? If you think you need that loser to make your life better, then you're more naïve than I thought. As your friend, I'm warning you right now, if you let him get close to you he'll just break your heart again. I don't need that punk-ass liar in my life," Nathan abruptly stood up and angrily walked into the hospital, without looking back.

* * *

"Lucas?" Keith said when he opened the door, "What are you doing here?" 

"I came to see how you are…I heard about the fire,"

Keith nervously looked at Lucas and casually put his hands in his pocket, "I'm…I'm fine. How's Dan?"

Lucas shrugged. Keith nodded, understanding that Lucas never stopped by the hospital. The two stood awkwardly at the doorway, neither knowing how to act or what to say.

Lucas was the first to break the silence, "Can we talk?"

"Lucas…um, now isn't a good time,"

"Look, Keith…" Lucas pleaded, "just let me say I'm sorry for not telling you about Dan and Jules/Emily, whatever her name is. You were just so happy and…"

"I know, Luke. I know… while I was away, I had some time to think and to cool off. You were in a tough spot and you tried to the right thing. I guess I was just hurt that you couldn't come to me,"

"I'm sorry," Lucas tilted his head and gave his uncle a hopeful look, "So we're cool now?"

Keith smiled, "Yeah," with his right hand, he shook Lucas's hand and pulled him into a hug, "We're cool,"

After watching Lucas leave, Keith shut the door. He let out a smile, happy that he worked things out with his nephew. But there was something else that he was hiding. It wasn't quite time to tell anyone just yet. Keith took out his left hand from his pocket and stared at the white gold ring that was resting on his ring finger.

"Who was that?"

Keith turned around and smiled at his new bride.

* * *

Haley rang the doorbell and nervously waited for Peyton to open the door. On her way back to Tree Hill, one of the friendships she wanted to salvage was the one she shared with Peyton. Besides Lucas, Peyton was Haley's first friend. 

The door swung opened, revealing Peyton's hard icy glare. It softened once she realized it was Haley on the other side.

"Oh…I thought you were someone else," that was Peyton's apology.

Peyton's glare had scared Haley, "Geez, do you always answer the door like that?"

Peyton shrugged, "Just the ones who ring the doorbell," she joked.

"I thought you were ready to kill me,"

Peyton sighed, "Haley, I'm mad at you, but that doesn't mean I want to kill you,"

Haley began to relax, "Good to know. My mom likes the fact that I'm alive, too,"

Peyton let out a chuckle. Seeing the brooding blonde smile made Haley feel a bit more comfortable.

They sat down on the couch in the Sawyer living room. Haley was the first to speak, "Peyton, I came over cause I was hoping that we could work things out. I'd like us to be friends again or at least try…"

"Yeah, about that…" Peyton tried to explain behaviour earlier that morning, but Haley continued on with her rehearsed speech.

"Peyton, please don't be mad at me. I'm sorry for leaving, but I only did it because I was following my dream…"

"Haley!" It came out a little harsher than she intended, but it finally got Haley's attention. Peyton softened her tone, "look, you don't have to apologize or explain yourself for following your dream. I understand why you had to go. And I'm happy that you did,"

"So…you were never mad?"

"Oh, I was mad…just not about that," Peyton shifted on the couch so she could face Haley. "It may sound selfish, but I was upset with the way you left. You didn't say goodbye or even called. It was like you just left and never looked back,"

"Believe me, I wanted to call, but I was scared,"

"Scared of what? Haley, I was your friend. You knew that I supported your music and pushed you to show off your talent…you knew of all people that I would have been the only one who never would have asked you to come back home,"

Haley looked away and nodded her head, agreeing, "I know…maybe that's why I couldn't call you. You know, I dialed your number so many times, but once I got to the last digit…I hung up. Believe me Peyton, I really wanted to share this experience with you cause I knew how excited you'd be, but I couldn't,"

Peyton didn't quite understand. She remained quiet, allowing Haley to explain herself. She looked back up at Peyton.

"If I knew that you were happy for me, then I would have felt like I was doing the right thing…and that I wouldn't have felt guilty for leaving or for having so much fun singing on stage. I felt like after everything I did to Nathan, I didn't deserve to be happy…"

"Hales, you have nothing to feel guilty for. You do deserve to be happy…just call next time,"

Haley smiled and hugged Peyton. When they pulled away, Haley asked Peyton, "So you gonna pack your bags?"

"Huh?"

Haley stood up, "Come on, Lucas said that we could have sleep over,"

"He did?"

"Well…Lucas/me…same difference," Haley pulled a surprised Peyton off the couch and pushed her towards the stairs. "Now go pack your bags and drive us home,"


	3. Chapter 3

My plan for the story is to get Lucas and Peyton through the summer as friends...just being there for each other and such before they admit their feelings. As for the other couple, I can't decide between Brooke/Nathan or Brooke/Jake...so any input on that would be great. One last thing, for those who are also reading _Ever the Same_, I'm hoping to update by Friday. I'm a little stuck on that story...

Disclaimer: I don't own OTH or the characters.

* * *

**Chapter 3 **

"Found them," Peyton said when she found her keys at the bottom of her purse. She glanced at Lucas who was sitting next to her in her car. His eyes were narrowed and focused in a daze on the red dashboard.

When he finally snapped out of it, he saw Peyton trying to find the right key to start the car. He reached out and put his hand on hers, causing her turn her attention on him. "Thanks, Peyt," Lucas said.

"For what?"

"For coming with me and for being here for me," His eyes remained deeply fixed on hers, sending chills down her spine, "I couldn't have done it without you, Peyton,"

* * *

**Flashback**

"_I'll wait for you outside," Peyton said quietly._

_He shook his head, "No," He caught her by her hand, "Stay, please,"_

_Peyton looked into his eyes and saw fear. He looked as though he had become a scared little boy feeling lost and alone. She quickly nodded her head. _

_Lucas turned away and looked back at the man lying still on the bed. There were tubes running around all over his bandaged body. It was a scary sight to see for anyone. _

_Dan Scott was in a coma. He had been unconscious ever since Keith had pulled him out of the fire, three days ago. Dan's body was badly burned, however, it was no miracle that he had survived. The drugs and alcohol in his system caused him to blackout, slowing down his breathing, which prevented him from inhaling the smoke._

"_I…I don't know what to say…"_

"_It's ok. Just take your time. The words will come when you're ready," Peyton assured him.  
_

_Minutes had past and the room remained silent. Lucas stood in the same spot waiting for the words to come and staring icily at the man who was supposed to be his father. Lucas remembered the times when he went to the park and watched fathers play catch with their sons or who taught them how to ride a bike. He remembered being the only boy at camp who never had a father show up for father and son day. The thoughts always followed him and now it was time to let it go._

"_When I was younger, I used to dream of what it would have been like to have a father...someone to show me how to throw a football or even to look up to. But you couldn't do that, could you? You couldn't be there for me like a father's supposed to be…" Lucas's voice cracked. He paused, holding back his tears, "The thing I don't get is that even though you were never in my life, you were still there…haunting my mind and my dreams," He felt the tears stinging in his eyes. _

"_Well, I'm here now, not because I care for you, but because I realized something. You are only in my mind and my dreams because I hated you. I hated you for abandoning my mom and me...and I hated you for not being my father. But now... I am done hating you. I'm ready…I'm ready to say goodbye to you. I'm going to walk away from you, like you walked away from me. And I'm finally going to be free from Dan Scott. Even if you live or die, there's nothing you can do to change that. I'm not going to let you buy your way into my life again,"_

_Peyton watched as Lucas stepped closer to Dan's bedside, "There's only one thing I want to know. All I want to know is why…why couldn't you be there for me? Why couldn't you be proud of me?" A single tear escaped and rolled down his cheek, "Why couldn't you just accept me as your son?" Lucas stood there, waiting for an answer. Knowing that he would never know, Lucas's breathing became heavy with frustration and sadness. Even though he had let go of Dan, a part of him still wanted his father. _

_Lucas felt a hand on his shoulder, offering support. He turned and pulled her into him. Peyton held him tightly, holding his head on her shoulder and soothing his back. He needed someone to hold him and to console him. And there she was, just like she had promised him._

**End Flashback

* * *

**

"Hi, you've reached Larry Sawyer. I will be away until Sunday night. Please leave a short message and I will return your call as soon as I land,"

'_Sunday, that's one week from now_,' she thought.

She finally heard the 'beep', signaling her to begin recording her message, "Larry, it's Liz…Elizabeth Schwann. I think it's time that we talked…I've already talked to Peyton," the blonde haired woman paused before continuing, "I'm staying at the Tree Hill Lodge, Room 246,"

* * *

They were driving through downtown Tree Hill, towards Lucas's house. The ride home was quiet as each of them were thinking about Lucas's hospital visit. There was something he said that was bothering Peyton.

"Lucas?"

Lucas slowly awoke from his daze, "Hmm?"

"Can I ask you something?"

"Yeah, of course,"

"Back in the hospital you said…you said that you weren't going to let him _buy_ his way into your life again…what did you mean by that?"

Lucas sighed and asked, "Remember the night on the beach when I told you about my HCM?"

She momentarily took her eyes off the road to look at him. Peyton nodded her head.

"Well, since I found out, I've been on medication to control my condition. And at first, I couldn't afford it,"

"So Dan paid for it," Peyton pieced together.

"Right, but there was a catch…"

She thought for a moment, "Is that why you moved in with him?"

Lucas nodded his head, "Yeah,"

When she had first heard the news of Lucas moving in with Dan, earlier that year, she thought it was a joke. She knew how much Lucas despised Dan, "I knew there was a reason why you moved in with him…So…who's paying for your medication now?"

Lucas shrugged, "No one,"

Peyton slowed to a stop as the light changed to red, "What do you mean, no one?" One look at him and she knew he had stopped taking the medication.

As soon as the light turned green, Peyton stepped hard on the gas and quickly spun the wheel to the left. She made an illegal u-turn in the middle of the intersection, cutting off an oncoming car to finish off her erratic driving.

Lucas held on to anything he could get his hands on, trying to prevent his body from being thrown around during her wild turn. "Hey, I have a heart condition, remember?" he yelled over the screech tires.

Peyton ignored his remark and looked in the rearview mirror, making sure the driver behind her was ok. A block later, she pulled her car into an empty spot that was conveniently in front of the pharmacy. Her stop was abrupt, causing the both of them to be thrown forward and then back against the red leather seats.

"If you're trying to give me a heart attack…I think it's working," Lucas felt his heart pounding against his chest.

"Get out," Peyton said as she shut off the engine.

"With pleasure," Lucas was relieved to be on foot again.

* * *

"How can I help you?" the pharmacist greeted Peyton, who was standing at the counter.

"Hi, I'd like to get a prescription refill for Lucas Scott,"

The pharmacist nodded her head and disappeared into the back to check her computer files for the prescription.

"Peyton, what are you doing?" Lucas demanded when he finally caught up to her.

"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm getting you your medication,"

"No, Peyton, it's way too expensive. I'm already working something out,"

"So what are you taking in the mean time?" Peyton had made her point, "That's what I thought,"

"Peyton, I can't let you do this. It's too much,"

"Look my dad sends me money every month and I hardly use it. I mean it's not like I need designer clothes or the shoes of the week, so believe me, I don't mind. Besides, vintage is in," she said with a smile.

"But still, you don't have to,"

"You're right…I don't have to but I want to. Lucas, it's not about money," she put her hand on his chest, feeling his heart beating, "You are important to me and I don't want to lose you again," their eye contact was intense. For a split second they both felt something that they hadn't felt since the beginning of the school year.

"Lucas Scott?" a voice interrupted.

As soon as their eye contact broke, an awkward feeling arose between them. Peyton quickly took her hand back. They both nervously tried to avoid it and each other, as they looked anywhere but at each other.

"I'm Lucas," he finally said.

The pharmacist smiled and handed over the prescription and Peyton handed over her credit card. The pharmacist disappeared again to charge her account.

"Thanks, Peyton. I promise that I'm going to pay you back every cent,"

* * *

Night quickly fell over Tree Hill. Everything seemed to be working properly, keeping him alive. The ventilator slowly deflated, supplying his weakened lungs oxygen. The slow steady beeps of the monitor kept track of every beat his heart took. It was the second time in a year; Dan Scott was in the hospital, trying to recover from death.

His body was burned badly during the fire, but he wasn't in any pain. Just the right amount of morphine dripped into his IV and flowed into his body, relaxing his sensors. One drop every two hours kept him comfortable - Any less, then he'd be in pain – Any more, then he'd be dead…and the figure standing over Dan knew that.


	4. Chapter 4

Thanks for reading and especially for leaving a review. I like writing these fics in my spare time and reading your comments are always encouraging!

Disclaimer: I don't own OTH or it's characters.

* * *

** Chapter 4**

**A/N: Takes place the day after Chapter 3 **

"This establishment is for paying customers only," Haley remarked with a smile when she saw her two friends enter the café. Haley was back working at Karen's Café. With Karen gone and Deb spending her time at the hospital with Dan, there was no one who could run the café. Lucas had tried, but to be honest, he didn't really want all that responsibility. That's when Haley stepped in. The café had always been her safe haven from school and even her own family. It was Haley's second home.

"Any exceptions for two hungry friends?" Peyton asked jokingly.

"Or the owner's son?" Lucas added.

"And what would your mother say if she came home to find out that her son and friend at all of the profits?" kidded Haley.

"Oh, alright…" Peyton gave in, "Lucas will pay for our dinner," she smiled and nudged Lucas in the arm before jumping up on a stool on the counter.

"Thanks Luke, I'm starving too," Haley said before Lucas could protest.

* * *

Deb knocked on her son's bedroom door. When she left for the hospital that morning, Nathan was in his room. It was now 7pm and Nathan was still in his room. He had only come out during the day to eat. 

"Nathan, honey?" Deb said when she opened the door. She spotted her son sitting on his bed, playing PS2.

"Yeah mom?" he said without looking up.

"Can we talk?"

Nathan hesitated before pausing his game and putting down his controller, "What's up?"

Deb sat down beside her son and handed him a white piece of paper. It was his acceptance letter to _High Flyers_, "It says the camp starts on Monday,"

Nathan took the letter and tossed it into the trash can, "I'm not going anymore,"

"Why not? I thought this is what you wanted,"

Nathan sighed, "It is but, with everything that's going on…"

She wrapped her arm around her only child, "Nathan, listen to me. Don't stay here because you feel like you have to. We'll be ok and we can wait for you to come back,"

"It's ok, really. It's not a big deal,"

"Since when? You told me that getting invited to that camp would be an opportunity of a lifetime…Nathan, don't put your dreams on hold for your father or me. You have a life too and you need to follow your dreams,"

* * *

"Seriously, I haven't had a customer in over two hours," Haley commented at the empty dining room area. 

"Maybe it's the new cook," Lucas said as he chomped on a fry.

"I didn't hear you complaining when you wolfed down your hamburger," Haley defended her cooking.

Lucas shrugged, "I was hungry. I'll eat anything,"

Both Peyton and Haley rolled their eyes at him. Suddenly, Peyton's cell phone began to ring, "That must be Brooke...she must be home from another day of mother/daughter bonding,"

Haley and Lucas continued to talk about the café's dwindling business as Peyton answered her phone.

"Hello? Yeah…ok. I'll be there soon…Bye," Peyton slowly removed her cell from her ear. Her mind was frozen.

"Hey, Peyt…" he touched her shoulder and she slowly looked up at him. Lucas saw fear in her eyes. "Who was it?"

Her eyes shifted between his and Haley's, "My…my dad…he's home,"

* * *

Lucas walked Peyton to her car in silence. He was worried about her and couldn't imagine what was going on inside her head. He reached the car first and opened the door for her. 

"Are you sure you don't want a ride home? I mean I could drop you off before…"

"Nah, it's cool. I'll walk home with Haley…" Lucas saw her turn away, trying to hide her tears that were beginning to fall, "Hey, come here," He didn't know what to say to take her fears away, instead he held her as if he were trying to protect her from what was to come.

* * *

"Oh good you're back," Haley called out from the kitchen when she heard the front door open, "How's Peyton?" 

He heard the concern in her voice, "What's wrong with Peyton?"

The voice wasn't Lucas's, it was Nathan's. Haley slowly emerged from the back, "Hi," it was all she could say.

"Hey…so is everything ok with Peyton,"

"Um…yeah, well no not really," Haley began a nervous ramble, "Lucas and Peyton were here earlier and her father called saying that he was back in town and it kinda freaked her out. But who could blame her. I mean she's about to find out if her mother is really her mother,"

"What?" Nathan was clueless.

"You didn't know?" Haley sighed. She assumed that since Nathan had been in Tree Hill all this time and that he and Peyton had become good friends, that she would have told him.

"Wow…I had no idea," Nathan was in shock, "I guess I should have been a better friend, I mean I just dumped my problems on her and I never bothered to ask her how she was,"

"Nathan, it's not your fault. I mean Peyton's not exactly the type of person to announce her problems either. Besides, she has Lucas...he's really been there for her,"

* * *

When she finally collected herself, she pulled away and wiped her tears. His hands rested on her shoulders, "Do you want me to come with you?" 

Peyton's head shook after some hesitation, "This is something I need to do on my own,"

"Ok, but if you need me or anything, just call and I'll be there,"

With one last look, she began to get into her car. Even though she was scared, she remained strong. In a few moments time, she would finally know the truth and that's what she wanted…or so she thought.

* * *

A/N: This ended up as a set up chapter of future conversations. I think the next chapter will mainly deal with Peyton and her father. Also as of right now, Dan is still alive and I haven't decided if he will die or not or who set the fire. 


	5. Chapter 5

Alright, so Peyton's paternity is revealed in this chapter...I'd like to wrap up the Peyton/mother/father storyline soon. I have so many ideas and storylines in my head, I just don't know how to piece them together yet...I'm thinking of dropping a couple cause there are so many...but rest assured, true feelings for certain couples will surface. It may take a little longer than I anticipated (for getting chapters up and for couples to get together). Anyways, I hope you enjoy this one.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything OTH related. The song used in this chapter is by Van Halen**.

* * *

**

**Chapter 5**

"Dad?"

"Peyton," Larry walked over and swept his daughter into his arms. He held her tight, never wanting to let go because he knew that when she found out the truth, he'd never be able to hug her again.

"I'm so glad you're home now, Dad. Did you get my messages?"

Larry nodded, "Yeah, I got them all. I'm sorry I didn't get home sooner. I wanted to call, but I thought it'd be best if I told you in person,"

* * *

He sat across from his daughter at the kitchen table. His gaze was fixed at the brown wood in front of him, waiting for the words to come. Larry didn't know how to begin. There was so much to tell her about the past that could upset and hurt his only daughter. 

"Dad," Peyton finally began, "who's Elizabeth?"

Larry knew the day telling Peyton the truth would come, but did it have to be now? He hoped that she didn't really want to know because he wanted to spare her the pain, "Peyton, are you sure you want to know?"

"Dad, she's claiming to be my mother. Of course I want to know. Is she my mother?" There was no going back now. No matter what the truth was, she had to know.

"Peyton…" he trailed off.

"What? Just tell me, please. I need to know. I deserve to know," she said as her impatience grew to anger.

"Alright...but just remember, your mother was and always be the one who raised you and loved you. Remember that ok?"

Peyton nodded, "I will…please just tell me,"

Larry sighed heavily as he began.

* * *

**Flashback**

"_Liz! Don't!" Larry yelled as he rushed to the young blond who was leaning over the coffee table. He quickly, but gently pushed her out of the way as he brushed his arm across the tabletop, causing the white powder to scatter and fall to the floor. _

_She became upset, "Larry! Why'd you do that? I need…" _

"_You're pregnant for God's sake, Liz! How could you?"_

"_Just one line, Larry, please. One more line then I promise I'll stop," she begged.  
_

"_No. As long as you're carrying my child, you are going to stay sober,"_

_Larry didn't know. He didn't know that Elizabeth was hooked on drugs when he started seeing her. It was only when she moved in with him did he find out. But truthfully, Larry was never really in love with her, he had only asked because she was pregnant with his child. _

**End Flashback

* * *

**

Peyton gasped. Her mother, Anna, wasn't her mother. Peyton's hands trembled as her eyes filled with hurt and tears, "No, you're lying,"

When Larry opened his eyes, tears escaped, "I'm sorry, I wish I was but…Elizabeth is your birth mother," Larry paused, trying to collect himself, "She was the daughter of our band manager and that's how we met. We dated for a while and during that time…"

Peyton was numb. If Anna wasn't really her mother, then who was she? "What about mom?" she asked softly.

* * *

**Flashback**

"Girl, you really got me now'. You got me so I don't know what I'm doin'. Girl, you really got me now…You got me so I can't sleep at night…"_ Larry Sawyer sang and rocked his daughter in his arms. While other babies were sung lullabys, Larry's daughter heard every rock song from AC/DC to U2. Being a young and inexperienced father, Larry didn't exactly know how to raise a baby, let alone what lullaby to sing, but he was trying the best he could._

_It was three days after his baby girl was born and already, Larry Sawyer was a single father. Elizabeth had disappeared in the middle of the night and never returned. Larry wasn't surprised to awaken the next morning to find Elizabeth gone, but the twenty-three-year-old father was disappointed. He was disappointed that a mother would abandon her newborn daughter. It was something that he couldn't understand either because one look at his daughter and Larry fell in love. She was daddy's little girl. _

_As his voice became softer, mimicking Van Halen's version of the song, his baby fell asleep, _"Please, don't ever let me be…I only wanna be by your side…Girl you really got me now…"_ he continued to sing when a knock on the door interrupted. _

_He carefully opened his apartment door with one hand, while carefully cradling his baby. There standing in front of him was a young pretty woman who was nervously biting her thumbnail. Her hair was brown and curly and her face looked strangely familiar. _

_She smiled when she saw the baby in his arms. Larry immediately fell for her smile. _

"_Hi," she finally said, "I'm Anna…Anna Schwann. Elizabeth's sister,"_

_Larry was shocked. He wasn't aware that Elizabeth had any siblings, in fact, he didn't know much about her. _

"_You must be Larry…and this must be my niece…may I hold her?"_

_Larry was still speechless, but he nodded his head and let Anna hold his daughter. It looked natural, the way she held her and the way Anna held her tiny little hands. That's when her tiny little eyes opened. It was almost as if she knew she was being held by a stranger. Her eyes focused on Anna's warm smile. The baby felt safe. Her eyes sleepily closed again, finding comfort in her arms._

_**End Flashback**  
_

* * *

"Peyton, we planned on telling you, but then when Anna died…" Larry paused, biting back his tears, "I…I couldn't bring myself to tell you. She was the only mother you knew and I just couldn't take that away from you too," 

It was a lot for Peyton to take in. The only mother that she had ever known; the one who raised her; and the one that loved her unconditionally was in fact her aunt. The blonde teen sat in her seat, numb with angst.

"Peyton, say something…please,"

"I…I can't be here…" Peyton stood abruptly and ran out of the kitchen and out of the house.

Larry wanted to go after her, but he knew his daughter. She needed some time alone. Whether he liked it or not, this was how Peyton dealt with her problems. And Larry didn't like it. He didn't want his daughter to be alone. So he picked up the phone and dialed.

* * *

She waited for the tears to come, but there weren't any. Alone, Peyton sat in her car. With the keys in the ignition, she sat in her seat with her hands gripping the steering wheel till her knuckles turned white. Peyton had only gotten as far as putting the keys in the slot, as she was too emotional to drive. 

The shadow of a figure suddenly casted over her. Her eyes looked up and saw the familiar boy, "Nathan?"


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer**: I don't own anything belonging to OTH.  
The song used in this chapter is called _Somewhere In Between_ by _Lifehouse._

**Chapter 6**

"Peyton, it's me, Lucas. Just give me a call when you get this…I'm getting worried," Lucas ended the call headed for home. He had been driving around Tree Hill all night, looking for her. He wondered how she was after learning the news about her mother.

Lucas pulled up to his house and saw a lone figure sitting on his porch steps. Quickly, he parked the car and headed up the walkway. It was too dark to see who it was. But as Lucas approached, the figure stood up and stepped out of the shadows.

Lucas was puzzled, "Nathan?"

The younger Scott placed his hands into this varsity jacket and didn't look too happy, "Peyton's inside," Lucas let out a sigh of relief as Nathan continued, "She fell asleep but I didn't want to leave her alone,"

"Isn't Haley home?" Haley had been staying with Lucas ever since she returned to Tree Hill.

"Yeah, but you know how Haley is when she sleeps…nothing can wake her up,"

The brothers shared a laugh at the expensive of Haley's ability to sleep through anything.

Nathan was the first to stop laughing though. His grudge against Lucas was still strong.

Lucas stopped too. He felt the spiteful vibe, "How is she?"

"Not too good," Nathan said solemnly, "After I saw Haley at the café, I went by Peyton's to see how she was…I found her in her car. Her hands were on the wheel…holding on so tight her arms were shaking. It took me a good five minutes just to pry her hands off the wheel," his eyes began to water, "She could barely speak to me. I've never seen her like this before, Luke. It scared me,"

It took Nathan a few seconds to collect himself. He had never seen anyone so broken and it hurt him to see a friend like that, "It wasn't until I drove her away from her house when she started to talk. She told me that her mother, Anna, isn't really her mother,"

Softly Lucas spoke, "I know. She was her aunt,"

Nathan became confused, "How did you know? Peyton just found out and she's been with me all night," then he accused his brother, "Have you been snooping in her life too?"

"What? No," defended Lucas, "Her father called me after she left. He explained everything and asked me to look for her,"

"Oh," it was all Nathan could say. He felt bad for jumping to conclusions, but not enough to apologize. Instead, he decided that it was time to go, "Look, I got to get going. Just take care of her, ok?"

"Nate, wait. Why don't you just stay, it's late," Lucas tried to reach out to his brother.

Nathan shook his head, "This doesn't change anything between us, Luke. I'm only here because of Peyton. For some reason, she needs you. I know you've been there for her lately and maybe that's why, but if you screw up again and hurt her…"

"Hey, I never meant to hurt her," Lucas interjected, "If I could change the past for her, I would. I care about Peyton. I always have and always will,"

"I know," Nathan unwillingly admitted, "That's why I knew I could bring her here,"

* * *

Earlier that morning Peyton Sawyer woke up to find Lucas sitting beside the bed with a cup of coffee in his hand. Reluctantly she talked about her family's situation while he listened attentively. When she couldn't talk through her tears, which wasn't too long from when she started, he held her until she stopped. 

Without a word, he reached over to his desk and handed Peyton a pad of paper and a pencil. Lucas had smiled before standing up. He crossed the room, picked up his novel and sat in his chair. While she drew, she watched him read from the corner of her eyes and would sometimes catch his supposedly reading eyes on her. The look in his eyes gave her comfort because she knew it meant that he cared and would always be a part of her life.

She had been awoken by the smell of freshly brewed coffee that morning but it was the faint sounds a strumming guitar that lured her out of Lucas's room.

Peyton sauntered out into the hallway and quietly made her way to the kitchen where the music was coming from. She found Haley sitting at the kitchen table, strumming a slow tune. Not wanting to interrupt, Peyton gently leaned against the doorframe and listened to her friend sing.

_"This cannot be happening  
This is over my head  
But underneath my feet  
Cause by tomorrow morning I'll have this thing beat  
And everything will be back to the way that it was  
I wish that it was just that easy"_

Peyton intently listened to the lyrics. Oddly, she felt a connection to them.

_"Cause I'm waiting for tonight  
Been waiting for tomorrow…_

_I'm…I'm here…I'm…" _the words had stopped flowing from Haley's mind. She continued to the play the tune while finding the right words. Suddenly, Haley heard,

_"I'm somewhere in between what is real and just a dream," _Peyton filled in.

At first Haley was startled, but then smiled when she tried the words with her song, "Not bad, Peyton. Thanks," she put down her guitar and quickly wrote down the lyrics on a pad of paper.

Peyton shrugged as she sat down at the table, "You won't be thanking me when I sue for royalties and copy right infringement," her voice sounded serious, but it wasn't a serious threat. Peyton reached over and picked up the box of cereal. It was empty causing her to cast an annoyed look at Haley.

Haley laughed, "Then I guess I won't feel bad for eating the last of the cereal,"

"So what's got you lost?" Peyton asked, referring to Haley's song.

"Nathan…you?"

Peyton summed it up and simply said, "Life,"

"You want to talk about it?" Haley offered.

Peyton shook her head, "What's going on with you and Nathan?"

"Last night, he came into the café to…"

* * *

**Flashback**

_"…to tell you that I'm leaving tomorrow. I'm going to __Highflyers,"_

_The news shocked Haley at first, but then she smiled, "Nathan…wow, that's great," She came from behind the counter and walked towards him. He was still standing by the door._

_"Yeah. I wasn't going to go because of everything that was going on here…my mom's rehab, my dad…and us,"_

_"Us?" She was confused. A few nights ago when she returned, Nathan made it clear that there wasn't a chance that he'd take Haley back._

_"Haley, I never understood why you left, but I do now. I realized that you left because you were following your dreams. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity and you took it. I understand that now," Nathan looked a way for a moment, "Maybe I should have been a better husband and supported you. Maybe I shouldn't have been so jealous and so selfish. Maybe I should have trusted you,"_

_"What are you trying to say?"_

_"I'm not really sure. I mean I understand why you left, but at the same time you hurt me so bad and I don't know if I'm not ready to forgive, yet. I need time and I think that me being away from all this…will help,"_

_"So you're saying when you get back we can figure us out?" she nervously asked._

_He hesitated before nodding his head, "Yeah,"_

**End Flashback

* * *

**

"So, that's good, isn't it?" Peyton asked

Haley shrugged and then smiled, "Yeah, of course. When Nathan comes home we'll be happy again,"

The blonde picked up on Haley's unconvincing act and called her on it, "Are you trying to convince me or yourself?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Haley, why did you come home?"

"I'm still not following,"

"Did you come home because you had enough with the tour? Because you realized singing isn't your dream?…Or was it because you felt like you had to?"

"Peyton, don't be silly," Haley got up from the table and opened the fridge door. She tried avoiding the question, but when she closed the fridge door, Peyton was standing right there

"Just answer the question, Haley," Peyton saw Haley struggle with the question. She sighed, "I know it's hard but what kind of friend would I be if I let you make the biggest mistake of your life?"

Tears slid down Haley's face. She knew her answer, but was afraid to admit it, "I don't know what to do, Peyton,"

Peyton pulled Haley into a hug, "You and Nathan are both of my friends and I don't want to see either of you hurt," Peyton began, "Just be honest with each other and yourselves. Secrets and lies just make it worse,"

**A/N: **It was a little rushed, but it got the main points across (I hope). I know I'm lacking in L/P scenes right now, but at the same time, I don't want too much of them right now..which means there will be a lot more L/P after the next couple of chapters.


	7. Chapter 7

Thanks for reading and especially those who left a review. It's good to know that you guys are reading it and liking it.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything OTH related.

* * *

**Chapter 7**

A couple of days had past since Peyton found out the truth about her mother and since she had last seen her father. It was too hard for her to go home but she was handling it as best as she could – the only way she knew how and that was on her own. Of course Lucas and Haley were there for her but they didn't have what she needed – she wanted answers.

"Hold your horses," Whitey Durham muttered under his breath as he made his way from the kitchen to the front door, "I'm coming,"

She was about to knock on the door again, when it swung open, scaring her in the process. The sour look on Coach Durham's face softened when he saw the familiar blonde with the famous curls.

"Peyton Sawyer…summer vacation has barely started. What on God's green earth brings you by here?" he thought for a moment before joking, "What kind of trouble has Clyde gotten you in this time?"

Peyton smiled politely. She wasn't exactly in the joking mood and Whitey now sensed it. He had never seen such a young girl who carried so many burdens to last three lifetimes.

It was unfair and the only thing Whitey could do was what everyone else did – walk beside her and help carry the weight.

"You knew my mom, in high school right?" she quietly asked.

"Yeah,"

"Could you tell me about her?"

Whitey was glad to, "Well, she was a lot like you when she was in high school…smart, beautiful and always getting into some sort of mischief. But she had big dreams for herself. She wanted to…"

A tear slipped from her eye.

"Peyton? What's wrong?"

"She's not my mother," she softly admitted.

When the shock faded, Whitey solemnly shook his head and exhaled a deep sigh. Another burden to carry.

* * *

Larry Sawyer stalked up the stairs and onto the second story balcony. He passed each door until he found the one he was looking for. Room 246. Without hesitation, Larry pounded on the door. When the door finally opened, he saw Elizabeth. 

Anger pulsed through his veins. He was staring at the woman who had walked out of his daughter's life without even a glance back. She left in the middle of the night, without a word or explanation and now suddenly there she was…16 years too late.

Elizabeth wasn't expecting to see him that moment, but she was anticipating him to show up. It startled her to see him behind the door, but she quickly collected herself together, "Larry, it's been a long time. You haven't changed much,"

"What the hell are you doing here?" his voice was slightly raised with anger. Larry wasn't there for small talk; he was there to protect his family.

"I'm here to see my daughter,"

"You, don't get to call her that! Peyton is not your daughter and you are not her mother. You haven't been ever since you walked out on us,"

She remained calm, "And I've always been sorry for that but you know why I had to leave," Elizabeth had a nasty drug problem when she was younger. It was a habit she tried to beat but after nine months of forced sobriety, her cravings were stronger than ever.

"Yeah, to get high. Liz you chose drugs over her,"

"I was a kid and I made some bad choices but I'm clean now…I have been for almost 7 years,"

"So that gives you permission to waltz back into our lives?"

"She deserves to know the truth, Larry,"

"She does. She wanted to know the truth and I told her…I told her that Anna wasn't her mother and now it's killing her inside. Do you know how much painful it was to lose Anna in the first place? And now, Peyton is losing her mother all over again. Why couldn't you leave her alone?"

"I want to see her. I can explain,"

"No! You stay the hell away from her. The only thing you can do is pack your bags and leave," Larry gave her one last glare before walking away.

"You know she wouldn't want me to do that," she called out to him, "Anna would want me to..."

Larry quickly spun around. "Don't! Don't you dare say her name. Anna was a good mother and she didn't deserve this…neither of them do," he yelled, "You leave my family alone!"

* * *

"She'll call when she's ready," Haley suddenly appeared beside Lucas who was staring at his cell phone. 

"Huh?"

Haley rolled her eyes at her best friend and threw a dishrag at him, "Come on, put the phone down and help me get the place cleaned up," she pointed to the dirty counter top at the café.

Lucas gave in and picked up the rag to start wiping up the soiled counter. When the bells on the door jingled he immediately looked up, hoping to see a certain blonde, but it was no blonde. It was a brunette.

"Hey, Uncle Keith! Haley, look, it's Uncle Keith," Lucas grinned and dropped the rag back onto the counter causing Haley to sigh – although she was happy to see Keith, she knew it meant another afternoon cleaning up the place on her own.

"Hey Lucas. Hey Haley," Keith nodded.

"Hey Keith. It's good to see you," she said giving him a hug.

"So, come to take your favorite nephew away from his work?" Lucas asked.

"Well, not exactly. I came by to tell you some good news, I'd like to share,"

As if on cue, the door to the café jingled again. Keith smiled as he watched her walk in. Lucas's face dropped while Haley blinked several times, to make sure her eyes weren't playing tricks, but both remained speechless as they watched Emily Carr, also known as Jules, walk into Keith's arms.

"I'd like you guys to meet my wife," Keith smiled, "Emily,"

* * *

It had been a long time since he had last seen her – too long to remember. But he needed her now more than ever. Larry had been sitting there for a few minutes trying to find the words to tell her how he had let her down; how he was a terrible father; and how lost he was without her. 

"I miss you so much. I don't know how I could let things get so out of control. I shouldn't have left months at a time. I should have been here for her…been here being a father you could be proud of, like I promised. But after you left, I couldn't stay here," Larry took a deep breath, trying to fight the tears. "Missing you hurt too much and it tore me up inside listening to her cry herself to sleep every night,"

"Why did you have to go? I need you here, Anna. I don't know what to do," he choked out, "I tried to protector her, but I couldn't. I tried to spare her all this pain, but I couldn't. I failed our daughter…I'm so sorry," His shoulders slumped in and his head hung low as he sobbed.

A twig snapped causing Larry to look up from his wife's grave. Behind him stood their daughter, with tears streaming down her face.

"Peyton," he whispered through his own tears.

Her heart broke, seeing her father like that. He had tried his best to raise her on his own when Elizabeth walked out and again when her mother died. They were both lost and neither knew how to deal with the pain. But none of this was his fault and she was sorry for making him feel that way.

Peyton collapsed into her father's arms and cried. "I love you, dad,"

Larry could barely speak through his falling tears, "I love you too, Peyton,"

"I miss her so much," she cried softly.

Together they held each other trying to ease the pain of missing her. "I do too,"

Even though she was no longer with them, she would always be the one thing that would bring them back together. She would always be a part of them and they would always be a family.


	8. Chapter 8

I wanted to explain the Keith/Emily storyline in a flashback, but I decided to focus more on the teen's storyline because I want to end the story soon (unfortunately because school is back in session)and there's so many scenes I want to write.But I'm hoping that it'll last till the time season 3 starts, that way you'll have at least something to tie you over till then. Thanks and enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything OTH related.

* * *

**Chapter 8**

Nathan was having the time of his life at _Highflyers._ It was everything he had expected -he competed with the best and learned from the best coaches in the country, but most of all he was having fun.

Today was no exception. All campers were given the day off to enjoy L.A. Nathan had made a couple of new friends and were having a late snack at the food court in the mall.

"Hey, check out those girls over there," Jeremy, who was Nathan's roommate, pointed across the mall.

"Not bad," commented Alex, "I could get used to living here," he said grinning.

Nathan turned his head around to look at the girls. One of the girls immediately caught his attention. His trademark grin grew across his lips. He turned back to his friends, "I'll bet each of you twenty bucks that by the end of the day I'll have a date with one of them,"

Jeremy and Alex looked at each other and scoffed.

"Alright, I'm in," Jeremy said, "This'll be the easiest 20 bucks I've ever gotten,"

Alex agreed, "This I got to see,"

Nathan stood up and smiled, "I'll be right back,"

* * *

It was nearly midnight in Tree Hill and the beach walkers were out on their nightly stroll. Peyton and Lucas loved the beach after sun down. Night walks along the beach had become a ritual for them that summer. In the beginning, they never planned on meeting on the beach. They would always arrive separately but would always leave together. 

The waves crashing against the shore provided soothing sounds and it was the only sound as the beach wasn't crowded with sunbathers or tourists after sun down. Often times it was just the two of them walking along the shoreline – it was their beach.

"So Keith and Emily," Peyton said upon hearing the news of Keith's marriage.

"Yep," Lucas kicked the sand, "I couldn't believe it when I heard it...I even saw them with my own eyes and I still couldn't believe it. Keith told me afterwards that Emily found him in Charleston and wouldn't leave until he listened. When he gave in, she explained everything...her debt, meeting Dan, Dan's insane plan...and that in the middle of it all, she really did fall in love with him and that she'd do anything to prove it,"

"What exactly did she do?"

"She took him back to her hometown to introduce him to her family and friends. They stayed there for a couple of weeks and he really got to know the real Emily. Keith said it was like falling in love with her all over again,"

"Except the first time, it wasn't really her..."

It was a bizarre situation to say the least. Lucas and Peyton could only share a laugh because only in Tree Hill will you find a story like Keith's.

"How do you feel about it?"

Lucas shrugged, "If Keith is happy, then I'm happy. I mean, yeah, I was in total shock when they told me, but I really do think that Emily fell in love with him,"

"Some people really deserve second chances,"

"Yeah," He closed the gap between them and put his arm around her, "So how are things with you and your dad?"

"Better," it was all she said.

"But…" he knew there was more and encouraged her to talk.

"But I feel like there are things that my dad isn't telling me,"

"So...you want to see her?"

She let out a long breath, "I don't know. I mean I kinda want to know why she left but at the same time, I don't really care...As far as I'm concerned, my mother was the one who was there for me, who stayed up with me when I was sick...who held my hand the first day of school...who made me hot cocoa when it rained...Even though she was there for me for the first nine years of my life, I still feel like I don't know who she really was,"

"And you think Liz is the only one who can tell you that?"

"She was the only one who knew her when she was growing up,"

* * *

"Brooke, you are like a fashion goddess," Samantha exclaimed as she took the top that Brooke picked out for her. 

Brooke shrugged off the compliment, "Oh, please. I'm just getting started. You guys haven't seen anything yet,"

"Your fashion sense just proves that you are a Davis through and through, you belong here in L.A.," Caroline remarked. She was also Brooke's cousin, "Are you sure you want to move back to Tree Hill?"

Brooke was about to answer when someone said, "Well you know what they say: You can take a girl out of Tree Hill but you can't take Tree Hill out of the girl,"

Brooke's eyes widened at the sound of the voice. She spun around and her jaw dropped with astonishment. Her voice squealed excitedly, "Nathan!"

* * *

"Well, my mom says 'hi' and is very proud of you," Lucas said as he put his cell phone away and joined Haley on the porch swing. On his way home, Karen, who was in New Zealand with Andy, had called to check in with her son. 

"How's she doing?"

"She's good. She sounds happy,"

"At least someone is happy," she tried to be optimistic, but sounded bitter instead.

Lucas shot her a questioning look, and then he remembered Nathan and understood. "He'll be back soon, Hales,"

"I know, but it's not that. It's just that…I don't know…sometimes I wish we could go back to the beginning and just do this whole year over or fast forward to next year and not deal with all of this,"

Lucas chuckled, "It won't work. Believe me, I tried,"

"Argh…tell me again why you wanted to join the basketball team again?"

"Hey, I didn't ask you to tutor Nathan," Lucas reminded her, "That was all you,"

"Yeah, only because you two couldn't behave like normal brothers,"

The two best friends sat in silence for a second before saying it at the same time, "It's Dan's fault," Lucas and Haley let out a much needed laugh.

"Why is it that, every terrible thing that has happened, it always comes back to Dan?" Lucas pointed out.

"Six degrees of Dan Scott – He's in the middle of the Tree Hill web of drama," Haley said before becoming quiet again.

"Hey, if it makes you feel any better, I told Brooke I wanted to her to stay,"

Haley didn't think much of the comment, "That was nice of you, Lucas,"

"Then I kissed her," he finished.

Her eyebrows raised in surprise, "Oh…" she got the picture now, "Lucas, I knew you guys were friends again…"

Lucas shrugged, "She's a great girl. We have fun together,"

"I know, but…really? Brooke?" she still couldn't get over it.

"Haley…" he was beginning to get frustrated with her disbelief.

"Ok…Ok…I'm just…umm…so why did she say?"

"She said she had to go and left," Lucas sighed.

"Do you love her?"

Lucas thought for a moment before answering, "You know the thing is, when I'm with Brooke I forget about everything and just have fun. It was exciting to get to know her and work on our relationship. But with Peyton, things were different,"

"How so?"

"With Peyton we never really had to work on our relationship. It was always there and it was like we already understood each other…we never had to say anything to each other, we just knew. It was scary, but only when we had to say it aloud,"

"So I guess your problems with Peyton were insecurity and timing,"

Lucas didn't answer. He just sat there beside her and looked down at his feet. Haley watched her best friend sitting beside her. She wondered what was going on in his head – wondered if he finally knew – wondered if she would be one who would help him realize it.

"Lucas, can I ask you a question?"

His eyes looked up at her, "Yeah, anything,"

"Why is it that, whenever we talk about love, it always comes back to Peyton?"


	9. Chapter 9

Thank you for all of the awesome reviews. I have a feeling most won't like this chapter, but some things are worth waiting for.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything OTH related

* * *

**Chapter 9**

It was Haley's day to manage the cafe, allowing Lucas to have the day off. Peyton, who had nothing better to do, arrived at Lucas's house to hang out. Neither of them felt like doing anything that day, so they stayed in to sketch and read. But neither of them got much accomplished as they were each lost in their own thoughts.

Lucas was confused by his thoughts and feelings that re-emerged when Haley asked him that question the night before. He hadn't felt this way in a long time - something inside him was becoming alive again.

It was a feeling that he had tried to forget when she pushed him out of her life, he didn't put up a fight. only because he thought he was doing the right thing by giving her what she thought she wanted. He let her slip away and it was mistake that he would always regret.

Lucas had no choice but to bury the feelings he had for her, especially when Jake came back. His heart ached every time he saw her with him. It was too painful to know that she was had moved on and was with someone else. But all he wanted was for her to be happy. And knowing that she wasn't alone anymore and that Jake would never hurt her like he did, Lucas sacrificed his own happiness and desperately tried to move on. That was how much he loved her. But now, Jake was gone and his feelings were still there...waiting to surface.

He stared at her intensely as she seemed to be concentrating on her drawing. Peyton bit on her bottom lip as her thoughts clouded her mind. Her thoughts were far from considering a relationship with Lucas - with any boy for that matter. At this time in her life, a relationship just didn't seem important to her. She felt like a child lost in a crowd of people, trying to find her mother and that was exactly what she had drawn.

"Peyton..."

"Lucas..."

They called each other's names at the same time. Lucas smiled and politely allowed Peyton to continue.

"I want to see Elizabeth," Peyton said quickly before she had a chance to change her mind. "Will you come with me?"

* * *

Peyton bit her thumb nail as she waited nervously for the door to open. She felt Lucas's hand gently pull her hand away from her mouth and held it. He gave her a reassuring smile - she wasn't doing this on her own anymore. 

The door slowly opened and there she was, Peyton's biological mother, Elizabeth.

"Peyton," she smiled with a wonderful surprise, "I was hoping that you would come,"

The teen was frozen. Her body felt tense and like Jell-O at the same time. Ever since she learned about Elizabeth's true identity, Peyton wanted nothing to do with her. As far as she was concerned, Anna was and always will be her mother. Elizabeth was nothing more than just a stranger.

Peyton felt a squeeze on her hand, encouraging her to speak up. She cleared her throat and softly began, "I'm just here because I want to know more about my mother,"

Elizabeth smiled happily, but it quickly faded when she realized that Peyton wasn't talking about her. Nonetheless, Peyton had come to see her. The older woman stepped aside, allowing Peyton and Lucas to enter.

* * *

Peyton listened intently about her mother's life. But the more she heard, the more she realized that she wasn't like her at all. Anna loved cheerleading. She had been the captain of her squad and even won the State Championships her senior year. Anna was also on student's council and was active in various community projects. Hearing all this made Peyton wonder...if Anna was watching over her, then she wouldn't be very proud of her at all. 

"Peyton," Liz suddenly said, "There's something I want you to know...about why I left,"

Lucas looked at Peyton, who was quietly staring at the carpet. She didn't say anything, allowing Liz to go on.

"Before I met your father, I experimented with drugs. I'm not proud of it and wish I never did it. I know it's not an excuse, but I was young and naive. I hung out at a bar called 'Slander'...every weekend they had live bands playing...I wasn't actually allowed in because I was underage, but I got to know one of the managers. And the next thing I knew, he offered me cocaine. It would have been so easy to walk away, but I didn't. I thought..." Liz's eyes began to water as she remembered the first line she ever hit, "I thought that if I don't do it, he won't let me come back...I was so stupid,"

Peyton's body shivered. She couldn't believe what she was hearing - how similar the story was.

"After I was hooked, I met your father. I was so ashamed of it, I never told him, but he found out. I was pregnant...and I was about to do a line, when he walked in..."

Lucas looked away disgusted. It was one thing to mess up your own life with drugs, but it was another thing when another innocent life was involved.

Peyton, on the other hand, didn't look away. She looked on horrified and angry at Liz. Her life could have ended before it even had a chance to start. Suddenly Peyton couldn't take it anymore, but she didn't say anything. Instead she abruptly stood up and bolted out of the room.

Both Lucas and Liz stood up to go after her. Lucas got to the door first, "Don't...you'll just make things worse,"

"I never did it. I swear to you and Peyton," she said desperately, "I never did a line while I was pregnant with her. I was completely sober...a bitch, but sober..." Liz continued, "Larry helped me stay strong. But after Peyton was born, I couldn't take it anymore,"

Lucas stood at the doorway, listening to Liz. She looked away from him and remembered the first time she held Peyton in her arms, "She was the most beautiful baby I had ever seen...so innocent and healthy. And I was ashamed that I almost ruined that for her. I felt that I didn't deserve her...that she deserved a better mother...a mother who could love her and take care of her in ways I couldn't...I'm so sorry,"

"Don't be sorry," he said quietly, "You gave Peyton and Anna each other,"

Liz looked down and wiped her eyes. She had made the right decision 16 years ago. She couldn't be the mother Peyton deserved - the kind of mother that Anna had been.

Lucas was about to leave when Anna called him back, "Lucas," Liz went over to her bedside table and picked up a pile of papers and envelopes. She handed them to Lucas. "Please...give these to Peyton,"

* * *

Lucas found Peyton in the parking lot, pacing beside her car. She hadn't noticed Lucas standing there until she nearly walked into him. When she did, she flung her arms around him and choked out, "I don't know who I am any more, Lucas," He carefully wrapped his arms around her, careful not to drop any of the papers. "The more and more I hear about my mother, the more I realize that I'm nothing like her," 

All her life, Peyton had tried to be like her mother. And for the longest time she didn't know why she just wasn't interested in the same things. But now she knew...she wasn't like Anna, because she was more like Liz.

Lucas pulled back to look at her. With his free hand, he gently wiped her tears, "Peyton, it doesn't matter who carried you for nine months or who raised you for nine years...that doesn't define who you are,"

A part of Lucas knew how Peyton was feeling. Lucas too wasn't raised by his biological father. He saw his Uncle Keith as his father. Sure there were some traits that Lucas inherited from his biological father, but Lucas was nothing like him.

"I mean it doesn't matter who you got your hair colour from or why you bite your thumbnail when you get nervous...what defines you are the decisions you make in your life...including who you are...and you...you're Peyton Sawyer - the least cheery person I know,"

He made her laugh.

"But seriously, Peyt. Beneath that...I see the real you...you're this talented artist, this strong, independent girl...You're an amazing person with the most beautiful, generous heart that I know... And that's the person she wanted you to be...she's proud of you Peyton,"

His words were unexpected, but were from his heart. A part of her blushed and the other part of her was thankful for the friend that he was. A small smile released from her lips as they parted, "Thank you, Lucas," She leaned towards him and placed a kiss on his cheek. "You're a great friend,"

Lucas let out a disappointing breath as he watched Peyton climb into the car. A friend...that's how she thought of him now - nothing more, nothing less. He could feel his heart sink back down to where it was once hiding - where it was once protected from the pain the exact pain he was feeling now.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

She opened the door to find the familiar green duffel bag sitting in the foyer. It was stuffed full and it meant only one thing.

"Dad?" she called out as she set her bag down.

Larry appeared from the kitchen, "Hey, I didn't think I'd have the chance to see you before I left,"

"You're leaving again? Dad, you just got home,"

"I know, I'm sorry. But one of the boats broke down out at sea. They need a..."

"I don't care what they need! What about me dad?" she yelled. Peyton was angry to hear that her father was leaving her once again.

"Peyton..."

"Every time I need you, you always leave,"

"I...I'm sorry,"

"Well, sorry isn't good enough anymore. I'm sick and tired of you leaving me. You promised me that you were only going to get jobs closer to home. But you lied,"

Larry sighed, "That job doesn't start till next month. You know that,"

"Whatever,"

"Peyton, what is this about?"

"Just forget it,"

"No I won't just forget it. Peyton, maybe I haven't been around before...and I'm sorry about that. And things will change,"

After a few seconds of hesitation, Peyton finally admitted, "I went to see her," His daughter looked away for him with tears forming in her eyes, "I went to see Elizabeth,"

"You did what?" Larry angrily asked. "Peyton. I told you to stay away from her,"

"I know, but I just wanted answers,"

"Answers? What answers?"

"Dad, she told me why she left...But I don't care about that anymore. What I wanted...I wanted to know who my mother was. What she was like when she was growing up...I wanted to hear stories about her life...things I thought I never would never get to hear,"

Larry shut his eyes tights, holding in his emotions.

"She wrote her letters, dad," Peyton softly continued as she tried to maintain her composure, "Ever since she showed up at your doorstep, she wrote Elizabeth letters. They were all about me, dad," Peyton walked over to her messenger bag and pulled out a stack of folded letters and envelopes.

Larry's eyes opened as he heard the paper unfolding. He had no idea that Anna kept contact with Elizabeth, let alone that she knew where her sister was.

She picked a letter at random and began to read...

_Dear Lizzie, _

_your daughter is beautiful. I saw her for the first time today and I held her. She's an absolute angel..._

Together they read each letter and each letter brought up a memory or two about the wife and mother that they both loved and dearly missed. Larry and Peyton took turns telling their stories about Anna that made the father and daughter laugh and cry.

_...Larry doesn't know it yet, but he's going to be a great father, but can you believe that he wanted to name her Stevie? Lucky for her I was there to say no._

Peyton crinkled her nose at her father, who was laughing to himself, "Stevie?"

His daughter's facial expression caught his eye. He stopped laughing and smiled, "You know, your mother did the same exact thing when I said that name,"

* * *

**Flashback**

"_So what are you going to name her?"_

"_I don't know yet, I haven't thought about that, yet," Larry said as he sat down on his couch. _

_Anna gently laid the baby down into the brown wooden crib, "When we were kids, Lizzie used to say that a child should be named after a parent. That way every time the child would hear their name being called, they would always remember their parent,"_

"_Lawrence Sawyer, Junior...has a nice ring to it," Larry joked. _

_Anna sat down on the couch and sarcastically commented, "and I always said that children should be given a nice strong name,"_

"_Alright, alright," Larry got the hint, "How about...Stevie?"_

_Anna's nose crinkled at Larry, "Stevie?"_

"_What's wrong with Stevie?"_

"_How about Elise?" she offered._

_This time his nose crinkled, "Elise? You said a strong name,"_

"_I said a 'nice' strong name,"_

_Larry thought for a moment, thinking of a name, "You know, before we knew it was a girl, I was thinking of boys names,"_

_It was typical for a male to want to sire a son, but Anna hid her rolling eyes, "So what'd you come up with?"_

"_Peyton,"_

"_Peyton...I like that name?"_

_Larry smiled, "Yeah?"_

_She nodded slowly, "Peyton Sawyer,"_

_Larry got up from the couch and excitedly went to his daughter. He carried her back to the couch and sat down beside Anna. His eyes never left his baby girl's face, "Peyton Elizabeth Sawyer,"_

_**End Flashback

* * *

**_

Peyton smiled as she heard her father tell her the story of her name.

Larry wiped his eyes. Anna had the biggest heart that never gave up on anyone. She always had hope for others and that's what he fell in love with. He was compelled by the letters his wife had written and wanted to read the rest, "What else did she say?"

It was getting late and Larry had missed his ride back to the docks, but he didn't care. He was where he wanted to be. Boats were always coming and going, but moments like this were rare.

At last, there was only one letter left in her hand...it was also Anna's last letter to her sister.

_Dear Lizzie, _

_Not much has happened since I last wrote. Peyton just started the fourth grade and has become friends with a girl who just moved to Tree Hill. I think her name is Brooke. She's got quite the personality - always cheerful and into boys. She's the complete opposite of Peyton, but Peyton says they'll be friends for ever. _

_Larry was promoted to captain. I'm so proud of him, but it also means that he won't be home as much. He's away right now and I miss him so much. Peyton misses him too. She doesn't really say much, but I know it hurts her when she has to say goodbye to him. _

_I know you haven't seen her since you left, but there's so much in her that reminds me of you. The strength and independence that she has, she got that from you. But I also see apart of me in her. The passion that she has for art, the sarcasm and my God-awful loud laugh - but sometimes I think she only does it to mock me... _

_I'm lucky to have her in my life. I've watched Peyton grow up for nine years and I can't wait to see who she'll become and the things that she'll accomplish. I know that biologically she isn't mine. But that's not how I feel and I'm not sorry for that. I thank God everyday that I have her in my life. I'm proud to call her my daughter._

_Even though I want to be selfish and ask you not to come home, it just wouldn't be right. I love Peyton so much but you're still my sister and I still love you. You need to get better. Peyton deserves to know the truth about where she came from and when that time comes, the choice will be hers to make. _

_Liz, I'm not writing this to hurt you. I'm writing this because I want you to see what you gave up and because I want you to get better. Nobody blames you for leaving. You did what you had to do. Be strong for her Lizzie. People always leave, but sometimes they come back. So find that strength inside you and come back home to meet your daughter. _

_Love, _

_Anna_

When Larry finished reading the letter, Peyton couldn't help herself. She wrapper her arms around her father and he hugged her just as tightly. Nothing had prepared them for those letters. They had brought up wonderful memories of the past that would never be forgotten. They had also given them a sort of understanding about the choices that they would have to make about the future - choices that they would have to make on their own, but no matter what, they also knew that they would always have each other and a part of Anna right there beside them.

**A/N:** I think this is going to wrap up the Peyton/mother storyline. I'll make references to what Peyton decides or have a scene here and there, but that's about it. I'm going to focuse more on L/P and B/N/H. I haven't decided on B/N or N/H...so if you have a preference, just let me know...if not, I think I'm leaning towards a B/N.


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I don't own OTH

* * *

**Chapter 11**

"You can't keep avoiding her, Luke," Haley told her best friend. She leaned against the counter and crossed her arms. Lucas sat in front of her at the counter of the café.

"I'm not avoiding her,"

She shot Lucas a disappointing look and sighed, "Just please tell me that this is not about how you feel about her,"

"Hey, I just want to catch up with the guys at the Rivercourt...I haven't seen them all summer,"

"Whatever...Luke, you need to stop pretending it's not there. If you don't deal with this soon you'll really lose what you care about the most,"

Just as Lucas was about to answer, Peyton opened the door to the café and entered.

"Hey!" Haley greeted.

Peyton smiled, happy to see her friends, but it disappeared when she saw Lucas's face. His face was solemn and he didn't seem to acknowledge her before turning his had back to the counter. Not know what was going on, Peyton shrugged it off and figured that he was having a bad day.

The curly blonde took a seat beside Lucas at the counter, "So, I was thinking...since we haven't really hung out in a while, I thought maybe we could take a little road trip to Wilmington...do a little vintage shopping...maybe lunch..."

"Aw, Peyton. I'd love to, but with Dan in the hospital, Deb can't manage the café for more than a few hours at a time. I'm sorry,"

"It's cool," Peyton said understanding. She nudged Lucas, "So I guess that just leaves you and me,"

Lucas casted her a sideway glance, "Sorry. I told the guys I'd meet them at the court today, which by the way, I am late," he quickly stood up, gathered his belongings and was out the door before either girl could say anything else.

"I'm really sorry, Peyton," Haley apologized again, but this time for Lucas's rudeness.

"It's fine, Haley. Really," Peyton replied but her mind wondered about Lucas's behaviour towards her, "Did I do something to Lucas?"

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know. It's just that for the past few days...it's like he's avoiding me or something. Like just now, I walk in and two seconds later, he's running out the door. Do I have b.o or something?"

"No. Lucas...he's just a doofus sometimes," Haley answered while silently cursing Lucas in her head.

* * *

"Wow. I can't believe Peyton," Brooke exclaimed, "Why wouldn't she tell me about her mother? I mean, fine, we've been playing phone tag for like a month, but she still could have told me,"

Ever since they had seen each other at the mall, Brooke and Nathan hung out whenever he wasn't in camp, which wasn't that often. As a gossip queen, it was second nature for Brooke to pester Nathan for the latest happenings in Tree Hill.

"Well, it's not exactly something you say on voicemail, Brooke," Nathan tried to calm her down.

"I know, but I'm supposed to be there for her. I'm her best friend," Brooke pouted.

"Come here," Nathan laughed and wrapped an arm around her, offering a shoulder to lean on.

It felt comfortable being near him, but it also felt weird – he was Nathan; her best friends ex, Lucas's brother and Tutor Wife's ex-husband. Brooke quickly shook her feelings and playfully pushed him away, "You know what we need? We need to have some fun,"

* * *

All summer long, Lucas and Peyton had been virtually inseparable. Now all of a sudden, without any explanation whatsoever, Lucas was avoiding her like a plague. She knew something was wrong and there was something Lucas and Haley weren't telling her. Maybe she had done something, or maybe he was getting sick of hanging out with her or maybe it was something serious, like his heart - no matter what it was, she was going to find out.

The drive to the Rivercourt was short. As she rounded the bend, she looked out onto the court, expecting to see a game already under way, but there wasn't one going on. Slightly baffled at the sight, Peyton slowed the car down as she passed the empty park.

* * *

Nathan sat alone in the sand, watching his new friends run around the beach with Brooke and her friends. He laughed as Jeremy carried a screaming Brooke's cousin into the cool water.

"Come on, Nate!" Brooke yelled.

Nathan waved and shook his head. Brooke pretended to pout before coming over.

"What's wrong, party pooper?"

Silently he hoped that wasn't her nick name for him. "Nothing, I'm ok, Brooke. Really,"

She didn't buy it and joined him on the sand, "It's Haley, isn't it?"

"I don't know what to do. I thought being away from all of it would help..."

"But it's all you can think about,"

"Yeah,"

Nathan seemed surprised that Brooke knew how he felt. He didn't know that Lucas had begged her to stay in Tree Hill and that it was the exact thing that was haunting her all summer long..

Brooke's feelings weren't clear. At first, she was convinced that she wanted a second chance with Lucas, but ever since she found the box filled with happy memories of him and Peyton, Brooke wasn't so sure anymore.

Although he told her that the box was a reminder of the mistake he made, the contents of the box told her otherwise. Everyday, since that day, she remembered the photos. It wasn't that Lucas looked happy in the pictures that bothered her - it was the way he looked at Peyton - it was the same way Brooke wanted him to look at her - but he never did.

Nathan put his thoughts aside when he saw the sadness in her eyes. He looked out into the ocean and saw their new California friends splashing and laughing. It was time to forget Tree Hill and to enjoy the California sun. Without a second thought about it, Nathan quickly got to his feet and picked up Brooke.

"Nathan!" Brooke shrieked with surprise as he flung her over his shoulder.

"Come on, we're going to have some fun," he declared.

"Nathaniel James Scott, you little...you put me down right now,"

Nathan laughed and started to run towards the open water.

"NO! Don't you dare get me wet, Nathan. Put me down right now,"

It was too late. Nathan sank into the cold water, pulling a screaming Brooke with him. When she emerged from the water her hair stuck to her head and face. She shivered at the frigid water, but ignored it as she glared at Nathan who was smiling proudly ear to ear.

"You, are going to pay for this," Brooke playfully threatened. Without warning, she began to chase him in the water - both of them laughing and screaming.

* * *

The only light in the Sawyer's house came from her bedroom. The room where she could express herself freely without thinking about what the rest of the world thought. It was the place where she hung up her artwork or painted random words or pictures on her maroon walls. Whatever her mood, whatever her feeling - it was all on display.

Sometimes she would take some pieces down and put up new ones, but there were some, that never left her wall that year.

**_People Always Leave_**

**_Sometimes They Come Back_**

From her bed, she sat against the headboard and looked around the room. Her eyes rested on a picture of three people taking aim at one heart - the heart that she never forgot. Peyton sighed and walked over to that picture that hung beside her desk. She carefully took the picture down, revealing another piece of her work that hiding. Nobody knew it was there, but she did. It was always there. It was the only one that she was afraid to put on display.

**_And Now We Can Have It_**

Her eyes watered as she remembered that night. She had always wondered what if he hadn't said anything more or what if she had stayed that night...things would have been much different, that much she knew.

The sound of the doorbell brought her back to reality. She quickly dried her eyes with her sleeve and went to answer the door.

Normally, he would have just walked into her house and right into her room. But he thought they'd make too much noise coming up the stairs and would ruin his surprise. He carefully shifted the weight in his arms and waited patiently for the door to open.

When she finally opened the door, Peyton was more than surprised. She was thrilled to see his smiling face and especially the little girl he was carrying, "Jake! You found Jenny,"

* * *

**A/N:** Since the beginning I planned on Jake coming back...just not this early. But I think things will work out better this way. I hope you guys liked it...even though it was Jake at her door. I'm not sure how many chapters are left, but I'm hoping to be done with the story soon...which means I'll be updating every 2-3 days (hopefully) so keep reading and reviewing. 


	12. Chapter 12

Thanks for the reviews! This is pretty much turned out to be a set up chapter.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything OTH related.

* * *

**Chapter 12**

Peyton put a sleeping Jenny back into her carrier and then sat down beside Jake who was sitting on the edge of her bed.

"So how did you find her?"

"Pure luck...A cop in Kentucky was responding to a call and when he put his lights on, Nikki thought she was spotted. So instead of pulling over, she started speeding up and weaved around the other cars. The cop thought it was weird so he followed her...ran the plates and saw that she had a warrant,"

"Wow, lucky nobody was hurt. I can't believe she would put Jenny's life in danger like that,"

"That's why I had to go after,"

"Yeah, I know...and I'm glad you came back,"

"I told you I would," Jake smiled, "So how was your summer?"

"How much time do you have?" she joked.

He looked at her quizzically, making her laugh before she explained, "Well, someone burned down Dan Scott Motors, with Dan still inside...he's in a coma and they're still investigating the whole thing. Haley came back for Nathan, but Nathan left for _Highflyers_. As for me, well, I found out that I was kinda adopted,"

"What?"

"Yeah, that's what I said...My biological mother walked out after I was born and her sister raised me,"

"Wow, that must have been hard to deal with,"

"Yeah, it was...but I've been talking to Liz and we kinda have an understanding now. She's not here to replace my mother and I don't want her to either..."

"I'm sorry I wasn't here,"

"Nah, it's ok...I had Lucas,"

"Lucas?"

"Yea, I owe him a lot. I don't know how I could have gotten through it without him," Peyton voice became quiet towards the end. She was sad that they hadn't spent much time together lately and missed him.

"That's good," Jake tried to sound sincere, but what he wanted to know was, "Are you and Lucas...close again?"

Peyton shrugged, "We're friends..."

He was relieved to hear 'friends'. Jake had regretted the day he ended their relationship. It was the last thing he wanted to do but he had to find Jenny. Jenny would always come first to him and it wasn't fair to Peyton to ask her to wait for him.

"Peyton..." Jake shifted his body towards her. He gently lifted her chin to face him, "I wish I could have been here for you,"

Peyton smiled.

"I love you," he send and gently kissed her.

When his lips touched hers, she was surprised and her reflexes caused her to pull back. Jake looked at her a little surprised and more hurt.

"Sorry," she blushed.

"No, I am, I just thought..."

Peyton's lips stopped him from finishing his sentence. She kissed him with everything she had - trying to feel something.

* * *

"You know I should probably be hating you right now,"

"Me? What did I do?" she asked innocently.

"Ever since you told me about...you know,"

"Hmm...you know, I don't," Haley teased, "I guess you're just going to have to tell me...oh but wait, that would mean that you would finally admit it,"

Lucas threw a glare at her smiling face.

"Sorry. Look I know it's scary," Haley sat down beside her friend, "but you have to do it Lucas. Don't suffer in silence. It's the worse thing that you could do to yourself. Trust me,"

Lucas wondered if there was something else that Haley was talking about, "Are you ok?"

As natural as can be, Haley stood up and grabbed a cloth, "Yeah, fine," she started to wipe the already clean counter, "You on the other hand..." Haley looked up when she heard the bells to the café chime, "...have bigger things to worry about,"

Lucas turned around to see Jake walk in the door.

"Jake," Haley exclaimed, "You're back...look, Lucas, he's back," she nudged him before going over to give Jake a welcome back hug.

He covered up his initial shock and got up to greet Jake, "Hey, man. Glad to have you back...and you too," Lucas bent down to see Jenny.

"Thanks, man,"

Lucas stood up, "So, Peyton know you're back?"

"Yeah, we just came from her house actually," Jake put Jenny's carrier carefully down on a table. Haley began to play with Jenny, pretending to mind her own business. Jake took a step towards Lucas, "Peyton told me everything. I'm glad you were there for her Luke,"

"Yeah, me too," he answered as he rubbed the back of his neck. An awkward silence filled the room and it continued to grow when she walked into the café.

Peyton smiled weakly and stuck her hands in her pockets as she slowly walked over to her friends. Her eyes darted back and forth between Lucas and Jake.

"Hey, guys," Peyton said to Lucas and Haley.

Lucas gave her a nod before he quickly looking away.

"Hey, Peyt," Haley said before the room went silent again.

With perfect timing, Jenny's crying broke the tension in the room. Haley stepped back from the carrier, "I swear I didn't do it,"

Peyton laughed, "It's alright, I'll get her," she unbuckled Jenny from her seat and carefully lifted her up. Almost immediately she stopped crying.

Jake smiled and walked over. He wiped a tear from his daughter's eyes, "Looks like she just wanted you to hold her,"

Jenny grabbed onto Jake's finger and giggled. The scene caused Peyton to laugh.

Haley worriedly looked over at Lucas, who shook his head as he watch Peyton and Jake tend to Jenny. He couldn't watch anymore. He turned and quietly walked towards the kitchen where he could slip out unnoticed.

Seconds after he left, Jenny let go of Jake's hand. Peyton stepped forward, "Let's go see..." she looked to where Lucas was once standing. Her head turned to look at Haley, "Where did Lucas go?"

Haley sighed and shrugged.

* * *

**A/N:** sorry this one is short. I didn't get the next part finished and I want to make sure it's right before I post it. Hopefully it'll be up by tomorrow night. Enjoy and let me know what you think so far.  



	13. Chapter 13

Thanks for the awesome reviews and inputs! This is purely and Leyton chapter...it's kinda long, maybe a bit redundant...but a lot had happened between them over the year and it had to be brought up...anyways enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything OTH related

* * *

**Chapter 13**

If there was something wrong with Lucas, she was going to find out. He had been there all summer for her and now it was her turn to return the favour. Peyton was going to let him deal with whatever he was dealing with alone.

She found him in the same place where he found her the night her world came crashing down. Lucas sat there alone on the beach, watching the waves roll in. His mind was elsewhere and didn't hear her coming from behind him.

"Hey,"

He looked up at her surprised to see her there, "Hey,"

Peyton sat down in the soft sand beside him, "So..." she didn't know what to say or how to begin but she didn't have to.

"You know, I lost myself last year," as he spoke, he couldn't look at her. Lucas kept his focus on the water. He wanted to tell her and he was going to do it, "I got wrapped up in this...this whole other person and lost everything that mattered to me. Do you remember when I came to your room, the day before I left for Charleston?"

"Yeah,"

"I told you that I was going to be making some changes...I thought that leaving Tree Hill and everything behind would let me start over and just make me be a good guy. But the truth is, no matter how far away I was, I could never be him again because what makes me want to be a better guy has been right here all along. And I have to be honest with myself...I don't want to run anymore, Peyton,"

Completely oblivious to what he was saying, Peyton agreed, "Yeah, I know what you mean...I mean after you and I...well broke up, I just didn't want to feel anymore cause it hurt so much and it scared me. I felt so alone - I lost you and Brooke at the same time, my dad wasn't home and Nathan and Haley had each other... But then you asked Jake to come home and he did. He was there for me and he opened my heart again. I'm not afraid anymore,"

When he didn't think it was possible for his heart to sink any lower, it did. Hearing Peyton talk about Jake and her heart pained him. The pain he felt was indescribable. It ached his entire being.

"Peyton," he said softly.

She didn't hear him call her name, "Jake is a great guy,"

"Peyton!" he snapped, startling her. Lucas saw confusion and fear in her eyes, making him look away. He didn't want to be upset with her, he wanted to be happy for her, "I'm sorry...I have to go,"

Lucas quickly got up and left, leaving Peyton wondering what the hell just happened.

* * *

He was too angry and heart broken to go home: angry with himself for not being able to tell her and heart broken because she was with Jake. Alone he walked around Tree Hill, the place where he spent his entire summer with her. Everywhere he went, reminded him of her. It reminded him of how much he wanted to be with her and how much he loved her. 

But there was one place that was his: the Rivercourt. All summer long Peyton refused to go the court with him. She always complained of how hot it was or how many mosquitoes there were at night. So whenever he wanted to go, she would cover his shift at the café or hang out with Haley.

Along the water's edge he stood, throwing rocks into the river. It seemed to calm his frustrations but it wasn't enough. He stood there alone in the dark, letting his tears fall freely for the girl who loved someone else. His cell phone rang. Her name lit up the display. Lucas sighed and put the phone back into his pocket.

* * *

She had waited for an hour for him to come home. When he didn't, she started to drive around town looking for him. One would think that she would have given up on him, but not her. Her stubbornness wouldn't let her give up on him. 

"Hey,"

Lucas turned around and saw her. He turned away quickly. "What are you doing here?"

"Being bitten alive," Peyton joked as she swatted at a mosquito.

He wasn't particularly in a joking mood and she could sense it. Peyton stepped forward and stood beside him, watching the current.

"What's going on Luke?"

"Nothing,"

"Ok...well would you at least mind telling me why you're in such a hurry to leave every time we're in the same room?"

Lucas shrugged, "Not really,"

"Lucas..."

"Just leave me alone, Peyton,"

Peyton was taken aback by his attitude. She didn't know why but tears started to form in her eyes, "Fine," she started to walk way but suddenly turned around, "You know I thought you needed a friend..."

Lucas was beginning to hate that word. He spun around angrily, "Well, you thought wrong. I don't need another friend,"

"What the hell's gotten into you Luke? You know, aside from all this drama, I thought we were having a pretty good summer together. It meant a lot to me that you were there for me and that we were close again, but I guess it didn't mean anything to you,"

"What the hell do you know what it meant to me, huh? You don't have the slightest clue what it meant to me," Lucas looked at her one last time before walking away.

"You're such a hypocrite," she called after him, "earlier you said that you were tired of running...but there you go again,"

He stopped in his tracks.

"Lucas, what are you running from?" she tried one last time.

His emotions inside him were overflowing and were desperately trying to escape. He couldn't hold it in any longer. He spun to face her, "You! I'm running from you, alright?"

Peyton froze.

Lucas began to clam down. There was no going back now. She was going to know the truth, "Don't you see? All this time it's been you, Peyton," he took a deep breath, "you have been the only one in my heart. Peyt, you're the reason why I ran and you're the reason why I want to be a better person,"

"Lucas..."

As he spoke he slowly walked back towards his love, "Just give me the chance to prove to you that I am the guy you wanted me to be. I want to be with you...I want us..." He was now standing in front of her. If he lost her this time, it wasn't going to be because he didn't try.

Before she could answer, his lips crashed down on to hers. It was a soft gentle kiss but was enough to stir her slumbering heart. She felt her stomach flutter and her knees fell weak. She was about to pull away when she felt his mouth grow tighter around his. He wasn't ready to let her go yet.

When they finally broke apart, they were breathless. His forehead rested on hers. They remained quiet; enjoying the moment they had just shared.

Peyton's quietness scared Lucas. She knew how he felt, but he didn't know how she felt.

She knew in her heart that she loved him. Jake may have been the one who opened up her heart again, but Lucas was the one who always had it. Peyton was truly happy for a moment, before reality started to set in. Her eyes looked into his and started to water. She took a step back from him, "I'm sorry...we can't do this,"

He ignored the pain in his gut, "What? Peyton...please...look...I know you're with Jake, but I can't..."

"I'm not with Jake,"

"Wha...then what is it?"

The tears in her eyes glistened in the moon light. She wanted to be with Lucas but there was one thing that was standing in way and it wasn't Jake. It was the one thing that had always been standing in their way, "Brooke,"

"What?"

"I want to be with you. I really do, but what's going to happen when Brooke comes home? Brooke still loves you and I can't do this to her again," she took a couple of breaths, collecting her thoughts. The more she thought and remembered about the past, the more upset she became,

"I know, but she's not the one I want to be with,"

Peyton glared at him, "Then why did you kiss her before she left? Lucas, you begged her to stay. You told her you wanted to be with her, Luke. You **_chose _**Brooke. How can you stand there and tell me that you want to be with me after you tell her all that?" she yelled at him through her tears. "You told her that what you and I had was a mistake,"

Lucas shut his eyes tight. He knew Peyton was referring to the infamous Peyton box he kept in his room.

"Do you know how much it hurt me when Brooke told me what you said? Yeah, maybe what we did was wrong, but everything that we were, everything that we shared, I never thought of it as a mistake," Her emotions were running high and she needed to get a way. Her legs pushed her forward and away from him.

"We weren't...Peyton, I kept all those things because I couldn't let go of you...or us,"

She whipped around to face him, "If it meant so damn much to you, then why did you say it?"

"Because I couldn't be with you!" he yelled, "It killed me inside knowing that I disappointed you and that I couldn't be with you. And seeing you with Jake...seeing you so happy with him...knowing that I wasn't the one you wanted" the thought of her with Jake tore his heart up, "I just couldn't take it anymore. I tried to move on. I tried so hard to love Anna and Brooke the way I love you...but I couldn't. I can't,"

He slowly walked towards her. She stood there, unable to move. "I made my share of mistakes, but they're all in the past now. I promise that things will be different this time...I'm not going to run this time. You know how I feel and I think I know how you feel too, but if you need time, then I'll wait forever if I have to,"

He placed a kiss on her forehead. His eyes looked at her one last time before he started to walk away. Lucas didn't get very far when he felt her hand on his. He smiled as he looked back at her.

"I think we waited long enough," Peyton gently pulled him back towards her and wrapped her arms around his neck. Standing on her toes, she kissed him passionately.

For months they were lost as they ran from their heartaches, from themselves and from each other. But it was over now. They didn't need to run anymore because time had healed their broken hearts and helped them find their way home.

* * *

**A/N: **I kinda smushed two chapters into one with this...I had one fight about thier feelings/Jake and then the other about Brooke/Peyton questioning Lucas's motives and what not, but then I decided that L/P were apart long enough...just let them deal with it all at once...hope it made sense and hope you guys are happy with the result! L/P rocks. 

As for the other couples, they will be resolved (but I don't think their scenes will be long b/c for some reason it's hard to write for other ships other than L/P)... cabot007, I'm leaning towards a N/B pairing...I thought about the J/H pairing but at the same time I don't want to stick them together just cause their the only single ones in the group...but we shall see ;)


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer**: I don't own anything OTH related

* * *

**  
**

**Chapter 14**

Ever since they got into her car that morning, Peyton had been quiet. She was excited to be going to Wilmington and to spend the entire day with Lucas, but she couldn't help but feel guilty.

* * *

**Flashback – the night Jake came back**

"_Peyton..." Jake shifted his body towards her. He gently lifted her chin to face him, "I wish I could have been here for you,"_

_Peyton smiled. _

"_I love you," he said and gently kissed her. _

_When his lips touched hers, she was surprised and her reflexes caused her to pull back. Jake looked at her a little surprised and more hurt._

"_Sorry," she blushed. _

"_No, I am, I just thought..."_

_Peyton's lips stopped him from finishing his sentence. She kissed him with everything she had - trying to feel something, but she didn't. What she had once felt for this boy wasn't there anymore. Peyton broke the kiss again. _

_Her eyes looked down and away from him. She felt his finger under her chin, gently lifting her gaze. Reluctantly she let her eyes meet his. His eyes were full of hope._

"_Peyton, before I left I told you that I wanted you to move on and forget about me, but I lied,"_

"_Jake…"_

"_You know, I was scared to come home because I thought that you would have moved on… especially after spending an entire summer alone with Lucas…but hearing that the two of you were just friends… I'm just so relieved. Peyton, I love you. I want to be with you,"_

"_I can't Jake, I'm sorry," she pulled away from him, holding back her tears. Being with him again would be so much easier, but it wouldn't be fair to him. She could pretend to be in love with him when she wasn't. It would break his heart even more to find out that she was lying all this time,"_

"_Ok…ok. I can wait,"_

"_No, you don't understand. Jake, you're a great guy and I love you. I really do. When I was with you I felt things I never thought I would ever feel again,"_

"_Then what's stopping us?"_

"_Me,"_

"_I don't understand,"_

"_I gave my heart away a long time ago and he still has it,"_

"_Luke…"_

"_I'm sorry, Jake,"_

_Jake sighed. His own heart fell. But it was inevitable. Everyone knew that Peyton and Lucas had some sort of connection. Even when they were apart, it was still clear that their feelings for each other never died._

"_Don't be sorry, it's the way you feel," his smile covered his aching heart. "Mind if we go get something to eat? I'm starving," _

**End Flashback

* * *

**

"Hey," Lucas softly called out to her.

She snapped out of her thoughts and smiled at him.

"You've been quiet,"

"Sorry,"

"Nah, it's ok…you want to talk about it?"

"Before you came over…Jake showed up,"

* * *

**Flashback**

_There seemed to be an extra bounce in Peyton Sawyer's step as she entered her house that night. She couldn't help but feel like a teenager in love because that's exactly what she was – a teenager in love. _

_As she came up the stairs, she saw her bedroom light on. Peyton didn't think twice about it since she always left at least one light on in the house when she wasn't home. From the top of the steps, something in her room caught her eye. Someone was sleeping in her bed. _

_It was Jake. _

_She really had to start locking her front door._

_Her giddy feeling disappeared. Peyton tucked a loose curl behind her ear and crammed her hands into the back of her jean pockets as she stood in her bedroom doorway. She wanted to be honest with Jake about her new relationship with Lucas, but didn't exactly know how to say it. She didn't want to hurt Jake's feelings and knowing that his feelings for her hadn't changed over the summer, it was going to be hard. _

_Jake's eyes flashed open. For a moment he had forgotten where he was and looked around the room. That's when he spotted her, "Hey," he smiled. _

"_Hey,"_

"_Sorry, I was just waiting for you and I guess I must have dozed off…"_

"_Its fine," Peyton crossed the room to her desk, increasing the space between them, "so, what did you want to see me about?" She sat down on her desk and rested her feet on her chair. _

_Jake got up off the bed and happened to glance at her alarm clock. 5:03 AM it read. _

"_Did you just get home?"_

_Peyton looked down at her hands. _

"_Sorry, it's not my business,"_

"_Jake what are you doing here?"_

_He made his way across the room and was now standing in front of her, trapping her in her corner. _

"_Peyton, I know I said that I was ok with this, but I can't stop thinking about you…is there anyway I can change your mind? I mean we were happy not too long ago…maybe if we spend more time together…"_

"_I was with Lucas tonight," she finally blurted out, crushing his hopes. "We finally talked and…"_

_He was too late. Jake saw the happiness in her eyes as she talked about her Lucas. It was his own fault. He asked her to move on and she did. Why couldn't he have been selfish and asked her to wait for him? Why did he have to let her go? _

"_You're happy aren't you?"_

_Peyton nodded and she blushed, "Yeah, I am,"_

_That's why. _

**End Flashback

* * *

**

"Jake's a good guy and so much has happened to him. And I know he seems to be taking it well, but it just sucks that this had to happen to him, you know,"

"I know you really care about Jake and you guys got really close…"

"What are you trying to say Luke?"

"Are you…are you having second thoughts about us?" Lucas nervously asked.

"What? No…never. This is where I want to be…where I should be,"

He was glad to hear her answer because he felt the same way. Lucas took his eyes off the road for a second to smile at her. He reached out for her and wrapped his arm around her. She scooted over and let herself lean into his body.

"But we still have a long way to go, Luke,"

"What do you mean?"

"Just because Jake will be ok with us doesn't mean Brooke will. Lucas I don't want to lose her again,"

"I know," he sighed. Lucas placed a kiss on the top of her head, "But I don't want to lose you again either,"


	15. Chapter 15

First off, I'd like to say a big thanks to everyone who reviewed. I'm always glad to read what you think and take your suggestions into consideration when I write. I also love hearing from new reviewers! So thanks again!

Secondly, this chapter is a little short, but it sets up the next chapter, which is almost done...

Disclaimer: I don't own anything OTH related.

* * *

**Chapter 15**

Their trip to Wilmington was successful. They shopped, ate and more importantly, forgot about everyone else except themselves and just had fun. It was late by the time Peyton pulled her car into Lucas's driveway. She turned the engine off.

Peyton turned to face Lucas, "You know what today was?"

"What?"

"Our first date,"

Lucas smiled. It was uncanny that even though they hadn't really dated, they were already in love.

"Well then, I guess we should finish this date properly," he smirked, "Care to walk me to my door?"

Peyton laughed and continued to joke, "Wait, let me open your door first,"

"You know, I could get used to this,"

"Shut up," Peyton laughed lightly hit his shoulder.

Standing in front of front door of his house, Peyton snaked her arms around his neck while Lucas wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her body close to his.

"Should I initiate the kiss too?" Peyton smiled.

Lucas shrugged, "If you want…just as long as I get to kiss you,"

They met half way when their lips touched. Not a second sooner, Lucas's front door whipped open. Like two teens caught kissing by a parent, Lucas and Peyton jumped away from each other.

But it wasn't a parent who had caught them. It was Haley. She had been waiting all night for them to come home.

"Haley, what's wrong?" Lucas asked when he finally noticed her tear-stained face.

Healey didn't answer. Instead she flung her arms around Peyton and started to cry. Lucas and Peyton exchanged worried looks.

* * *

The party at the beach was just what Nathan needed. For the first time since he had arrived in L.A. he was finally having fun. He had to admit though; if it weren't for Brooke he would have spent all his free time in his dorm room. 

With two bottles of Buds in his hand, he made his way back to where he left Brooke. From a far he could see some guy talking to Brooke.

"Come on, I guarantee we'll have some fun tonight," he slimily said.

"Yeah, we will have fun…as soon as you get the hell away from me," Brooke replied with attitude.

The guy was about to reply with a nasty remark when Nathan suddenly appeared, "This guy bothering you, Brooke?"

"Who the hell are you?"

"He's my boyfriend," Brooke turned and put her hands on Nathan's cheek. She pulled him down to meet her lips. Nathan was obviously surprised, but didn't resist. Instead he dropped the beers he was holding and pulled her body into him.

* * *

Tears slid down Haley's face, "I don't know what to do," Haley said to Lucas and Peyton. Earlier that evening while Lucas and Peyton were out, Haley had received a call from her manager, Joey D., who had extraordinary news for her. He had arranged for Haley to go on tour with Sheryl Crow. 

Lucas and Peyton tried to console Haley. She had a tough decision to make – should she remain in Tree Hill and wait for Nathan, like he asked or should she continue with her dream and go on tour.

"What'd you tell him?" Peyton asked.

"I told him I'd call him back tomorrow with an answer,"

"Haley, are you happy here?" Lucas asked.

She wiped her eyes, "Of course I am,"

"No, I mean if…" it was a tough question to ask, "…if Nathan hadn't asked you to wait for him to come back, would you still be here?"

Haley didn't have to answer – they all knew the truth.

Peyton cleared her throat, "Have you talked to Nathan?"

"No…That's why I can't go. I let him down once and I can't do it again. I put him through hell and he's still giving me a second chance,"

"But are you still_ **in love**_ with him?"

* * *

When they finally pulled apart, they were breathless. The guy who was hitting on Brooke was long gone, but Nathan and Brooke had continued to kiss. 

"umm…I think he's gone," Nathan awkwardly said.

"Yeah," Brooke looked into his eyes, "Let's get out of here," Brooke took his hand and led him away from the party and towards a quieter part of the beach.


	16. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer; I don't own anything OTH related

* * *

**

**Chapter 16**

"Peyton?" Haley called out when she opened the front door to the Sawyer's residence.

Haley heard a voice coming from upstairs, "I'm up here!"

Haley made her way up the stairs and found Peyton in her bedroom. Peyton's back was to Haley as she stood in front of her bed.

"Hey, what's up?"

Peyton looked over her shoulder and sighed in relief, "I'm so glad you're here,"

"Yeah, well, you said it was an emergency…so what do you need?"

Haley watched on as Peyton bent down over her bed and scooped up Jenny into her arms. She turned to face Haley, "I need you to do a huge favor,"

"What?"

Peyton's gaze fell onto Jenny before throwing a hopeful look at Haley.

"No…uh-huh…no way," Haley spun around and quickly walked out of Peyton's room.

"Haley, please," Peyton begged as she followed Haley down the stairs. "She's already fed and I changed her diaper. All you have to do is keep her entertained until she takes her nap,"

Peyton and Jenny caught Haley at the front door.

"Peyton, I don't know the first thing about taking care of babies,"

"What about your brothers and sisters? Didn't you have to look out for them?"

"Hello? Baby of the family!" Haley said as she pointed to herself, "They took care or me,"

"It'll be just 20 minutes…half an hour tops...please,"

"If it were anything else, I would…"

"Kay, do you know how many times you bailed on me at Tric and I never complained? Do you know how much stress you put on me to find a last minute replacement?"

"See...I'm irresponsible. I can't take of a baby...I can barely take care of myself,"

Peyton sighed. She didn't want to resort to a guilt-trip, but she had no other choice, "Fine, then I guess I'll have to call Jake to come home early. You know it's not often that he gets to play with the guys at Rivercourt…"

Haley glared at Peyton and gave in. She held her arms out to take Jenny, "Thirty minutes…not a second later,"

* * *

Nathan lay alone in his room thinking about the night before. 

**Flashback**

_That part of the beach was theirs. No one but them had ventured out that far. Music from the part could faintly be heard from the distance but the sound of the ocean waves crashing up against the rocks seemed to be their choice of music for the night. _

"_So…that was some kiss…" Nathan finally commented. Ever since she had led him away from the party she had been quiet. And that was quite uncharacteristic for Brooke Davis._

_Brooke didn't acknowledge Nathan's attempt to break the silence. Her eyes remained captivated by the waves. _

"_Do you kiss all guys like that?"_

_That caught her attention. Brooked snapped her head and glared at him. Then she sighed and turned her attention back to the open waters._

"_Sorry...I didn't mean it like that. Brooke, what's wrong?"_

_Brooke shook her head, "Nothing," A tear slipped from her eye._

"_Brooke…" Nathan started, but Brooke cut him off._

"_What's wrong with me? I mean do I have 'easy' written across my face?" Brooke wiped her eyes, "I'm just sick of it, you know…I know I had that reputation back home but not here. Nobody knows me here, but yet at every party I'm getting hit on by every other pig,"_

"_Well, maybe you're getting hit on because you're…hot," Nathan blushed as he admitted it. _

_Brooke laughed, cheering up slightly but was still bitter. "Yeah, I am…just not girlfriend material I guess. Just ask Lucas…"_

"_Hey, Lucas is the biggest idiot we know…trust me. You didn't do anything wrong…he just wasn't the right guy for you,"_

"_I know, but I do miss him," she paused, "He was the first guy who ever treated me like a girl, not an object. He was the only guy who wanted to know who I was,"_

"_Don't tell him I said this, but deep down he is a good guy…an idiot but a good guy,"_

_Brooke laughed and nudged his shoulder with hers, "You know, Haley's lucky to have a guy like you, you know that?"_

_Nathan looked at Brooke. Their eyes met and locked on to one another. They felt something between them, slowly drawing them towards each other. Finally their lips met once again. The kiss was light and tender at first, but it grew into a stronger passion. She felt his arms wrap around her, pulling her body closer to his. She ran her hands through his hair as he gently laid her down onto the soft sand.  
_

**End Flashback

* * *

**

As Haley changed Jenny's diaper, she sang. Haley found out quickly that Jenny loved being sung to. Jake alwasy sang to Jenny with his guitar and she had grown accustom to his soothing voice.

"There, all done," Haley beamed with pride as she picked up the giggling tot. Her first diaper change was a success and she didn't have help from anyone. "That wasn't so hard now was it?"

"Except that you put it on backwards,"

"Huh?" Haley turned around to see Jake standing at the door way. She looked back down at the diaper, "How can you tell?"

Jake laughed, "Here, let me show you,"

* * *

Lucas was about to enter the café when he spotted his girlfriend across the street coming out of _Thud Magazine_. He crossed the street and called out to her. 

"Hey, you" she smiled and gave him a peck on the lips.

"Hey, what are you doing here?"

"Last minute deadline. I totally forgot about it,"

"Did you finish it?"

"Yeah…being printed as we speak,"

They started walking in direction to her car.

"So…you're all done for the day?"

"Yup,"

"Then how about spend the rest of the day with your boyfriend at the cafe?"

Peyton looked apologetically at her boyfriend, "I can't. I have to get home otherwise your girlfriend will be six feet under…I left Jenny alone with Haley,"

"You did what?"

"What? Is that a bad thing?"

"Haley and kids…not exactly a good mix,"

Peyton began to worry. She assumed Haley would automatically be good with kids. What if something happened? Would Haley know what to do? Would Jenny be alright?

Lucas let out a laugh as Peyton nearly broke out into a sprint towards her car. He grabbed her hand before she could start running, "Relax, I dropped Jake off before coming here,"

She punched him on the arm, "You couldn't tell me that before?"

Lucas rubbed his arm and shrugged, "Because you look cute when you're all worried like that,"

* * *

Haley closed the front door of the Sawyer's residence and checked to make sure that it was locked. 

"I hope Peyton has the keys with her," Jake commented.

Haley smugly smiled. She was still a little upset that Peyton tricked her into coming over to baby sit, "Oh I'm sure she wouldn't mind spending one night outside...heard it's suppossed to rain tongiht,"

Jake laughed and shook his head. He began to push Jenny in the stroller as Haley walked beside him.

"Oh, hey! Congratulations…Peyton told me about touring with Sheryl Crow,"

"Thanks,"

"When does the tour start?"

"On Monday, but they want me in Seattle by Friday for rehearsals and stuff,"

"So you're going, right?"

Haley shrugged, "I haven't made up my mind yet,"

"What? This is like huge...do you know how many people will get to hear your music?"

"I know, but Nathan is expecting me to be here when he gets home and after what I did to him last time, he wouldn't understand,"

"In other words, you're giving up your dream because you feel like you have to?"

"What? No!" she snapped.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to upset you,"

Haley let out a deep breath, "I'm sorry…I shouldn't have snapped like that. It's just that it seems like you, Peyton and Lucas think I don't love Nathan anymore and that I'm holding on to him for all the wrong reasons,'

"Well, if it helps any…I know a thing about letting go…but unlike you I didn't have a choice,"

"Peyton?"

"Yeah," he sighed, "But it's for the best, you know. If I hadn't let her go, then I'd only be fooling myself and we'd both be completely miserable. I know she loves me, but she wasn't _in love_ with me. That's why I had to let her go," Jake took a few more steps, "It hurt like hell, but at least she was honest. I don't think I could have handled it if she lied,"

* * *

Lucas politely held the door open for Peyton to enter. They were halfway to the counter when Deb emerged from the kitchen and walked toward them. 

Peyton was the first to notice Deb's running mascara, "Deb, what's wrong?"

"The hospital just called…Dan's dead,"

Peyton gasped then hugged Deb. Peyton looked back and up at Lucas. His face was stone. There wasn't any hint of emotion whatsoever. Still holding onto Deb with one arm, her free arm reached back for his.

Lucas was confused. He didn't exactly know how to react to the news. At that very moment, he felt nothing but then he felt her hand on his and he snapped out of his thoughts. His eyes fell onto hers and he gave her a reassuring smile that he was ok. Lucas came closer and put his free hand on Deb's shoulder, trying to comfort her and placed a kiss on Peyton's head, thanking her for being there.

* * *

A/N: I hope you enjoyed these two quick updates. I don't see very many chapters left in this story. Probably one chapter aboud Dan's funeral, B/N coming home, N/H finally dealing with their relationship and Dan's killer. I'm thinking maybe 5 chapters left...but that could change. Keep watching for updates...I'm hoping to finish by Wednesday. 


	17. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything OTH related

* * *

**

**Chapter 17**

Dan Scott had died of bacterial infection that easily invaded his body through his burn wounds. The fire that burned Dan's Dealership and ultimately landed him in the hospital, was still under investigation. With Tree Hill being a small community, they simply just didn't have the personnel or tools to find the arsonist. Some people wondered if it would ever get solved, while others, just simply forgot about it - but there was some or someone who would never forget about it.

Everyone who was in Tree Hill and knew Dan were now paying their last respects at his funeral. Although Dan was hated by most, they still showed up only because they feared that Dan would get to them some how, even in death.

But there were some who never feared him. Whitey Durham was one of them. If there was one thing about Dan that he was going to miss, it was the hateful banter that they exchanged every basketball season. Dan made a fine sparing partner, but would never outwit the old and wise Whitey.

For years Keith Scott cleaned up after his younger brother's messes – raising his nephew as if he was his own and Keith even taught Dan the mechanics of cars. One would think that Dan would be greatful for his brother's help, but not Dan. For years he took advantage of his kindness. Being the guy Keith was, he didn't care because that's what brothers were suppossed to do - stand by each other no matter what. But Keith was also naive. He never thought that Dan would be so cruel in planning revenge against his own brother for sleeping with his wife. And it was a plan that got out of control.

She was nothing but a mere pond in his game of life. Emily Carr-Scott, was a victim of a series of misfortunes that landed her debt. Dan provided her with a way out - a plan that would ultimately change her life. She didn't expect to fall in love with the man she was supposed to deceive and it angered Dan. But he promised to keep it a secret. And Dan kept his promise…he wouldn't tell anyone, instead, he craftily spun a plan using other ponds in his evil game to reveal her true identity. It left Emily ostracized from Tree Hill and from the man she wanted to marry. She had no choice. There was only one thing Emily could do...and that was to take matters into her own hands.

The abandoned son who was lucky enough to escape Dan's parenting but still suffered from his father's negligence. Lucas Scott hated his father for so long and wanted nothing to do with him. It took him years to take him down, but this summer, Lucas finally defeated Dan Scott.

The curly blonde who captured the heart of both Scott boys: Peyton Sawyer. She was nothing but a pretty girl who was once a mere distraction to Nathan's pro career – at least that's what Dan thought of him. But to her, Dan was a monster. She saw first hand at what Dan was capable of and the influence he had over his sons. He controlled Nathan's life and poisoned Lucas's mind. Dan was an evil man who didn't deserve to live.

The unwanted daughter-in-law: Haley James-Scott. She was never welcomed into his family. She was an even bigger distraction to Nathan's basketball career. His son was captivated by her – nearly giving up his basketball dreams and nearly giving up his life in a car crash. Dan had to stop her but he made the fatal mistake by underestimating her.

If anyone had lived in hell, it was Deb Scott, after all, she married the devil himself. For years she spent her life being his wife because of one night. Aside from her reason for marring Dan, Deb did actually fall in love with him. At times, Dan was a good husband - faithful and loving. But in more times than not, Dan only cared about one thing - himself. And by the time she realized that, it was too late. For years she tried to free herself and Nathan from his grasp, but he was always there to stop them. This time it was different, Deb was now set free.

Those were just a few of the people who were in Tree Hill. But what about the people who weren't?

Brooke Davis. She was too self-involved to notice the death grip he had on his son's life. Lucas never opened up to her or even mentioned Dan while they were together. It wasn't until that summer when she realized just how evil he was. Away from Tree Hill, she not only realized the kind of person she was and the kind of person she wanted to be, but she also saw the kind of boy Nathan really was – and he was better off without Dan.

His child prodigy. The son who he raised and had been there for him since the day he was born. And since that day, he controlled Nathan Scott's life. Basketball drills, basketball stats, weights, morning and afternoon runs, basketball…anything that would elevate his game. Dan demanded nothing but the best and for a while, Nathan obeyed. But since he met Haley, things changed. Nathan started seeing the kind of man Dan really was. He had destroyed the lives of so many and Nathan had to put a stop to it before it was too late.

The professor, Andy Hargrove, proved to be a valiant competitor. He had no idea the kind of power Dan had. It wasn't until Dan went after the women Andy fell in love with, did he step in. Sure he was young and didn't have the cold heart that Dan had, but Andy did have the brains and guts to go head to head with Dan. And that was enough because in the end, Dan would get schooled.

Finally, the woman Dan had loved, but left: Karen Roe. She was perhaps the only one in Tree Hill who had reason to watch Dan burn in hell. He had left her to pursue his dream and ended up with another woman and child instead. He had left her alone to raise their child with very little support. But Karen was no fool. She knew the type of man he was and made sure that he had nothing to do with Lucas's life. Although she had gotten her way, the fact that her son had to grow up without a father still hurt her.

But what got her the most was that even after all these years; Dan seemed to want to be a part of Lucas's life. He had somehow convinced Lucas to move in with him and offered him a job to work along side him at the dealership. Karen didn't know what to do but there was one thing that she did know…there was no way that she would ever let Dan be a part of her son's life and she would do anything to stop him.

There was eleven. Eleven known suspects. These were the people who were the closest and the most affected by Dan. But who was the one responsible for setting the world free of Dan Scott?

There was one. One person who set the blaze. And he was the one responsible for setting the world free of Dan Scott.

But, there was more. More than one person was involved.

* * *

**Somewhere in New Zealand**

"Are you sure everything is ok..." Andy Hargrove said into the phone.

Karen and Andy were spending a day at beach when Andy received a phone call.

"Alright, if there is anything else that I can do, just let me know...ok...You take care of yourself...I will. Thanks, bye,"

Andy ended his call and looked at Karen who was sitting besided, listening to his half of his conversation, "That was Deb,"

"How is she?"

"She's ok. A little shaky, but she'll be alright,"

"I can't believe this, Andy. I can't believe we did this,"

He put his hand on hers, "I know. But we have to let it go now. Karen, we're not the ones responsible but we know who are,"

"I know. But keeping it a secret...we're just as responsible,"

* * *

**Flashback**

He was on his way to the airport when he saw the flames. Bright orange and red flames flickered inside Dan's office. Without hesitation Andy pulled into the car lot and jumped out of the car. For a second he was memorized by the raging fire and without taking his eyes off the fire he pulled out his cell phone. He was about to dial 911 when he saw them.

Andy saw two figures inside: one sitting in the office chair, making no attempt to move: the other, slowly trying to crawl out of the burning building. He dropped his phone and ran in to help.

By the time he dragged the body out of the burning building, Andy was exhausted. He staggered a bit as he tried to go back in for the second person. Andy coughed and tried to get clean oxygen into this lungs. He was too weak to go back in. That's when he felt a strong pair of hands pull him back from the building.

"Go on, get out of here. Get Whitey out of here," Keith yelled at Andy just before he went in to save his brother.


	18. Chapter 18

I wasn't planning on updating tonight, but physics sucks and I needed a break from it...Anyways, thanks for R&R-ing! Chapter 17 was basically just a run down of all the potential 'suspects' who had a reason to kill Dan (or to keep it a secret). Another thing I should clarify…at the end, Andy saw two people in the fire, Whitey and Dan…so it was Whitey who set the fire. Keith wasn't involved with setting the fire…I hope this chapter will clear that up.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything OTH related

* * *

**Chapter 18**

As the casket lowered into the grown all Deb could think about was that night – the night of the fire. The guilt inside her tormented her mind.

**Flashback**

_The day after the fire, Deb found herself at Whitey's house. She had no idea what was going on. All Keith told her on the phone was to get to Whitey's house as soon as possible. So there she sat in the small living room with Whitey, Keith and Andy. _

"_Does anyone mind telling me what's going on?" Deb finally asked. _

_Keith looked over at Whitey, who stared angrily out the window. When neither of the two men spoke up Andy cleared his throat. _

"_There's something you should know about the fire, Deb,"_

"_What? What is it?"_

_Andy glanced over at Whitey. Whitey mumbled to himself for a bit. _

_Suddenly Keith began, "Last night, I was on my way to see Dan. When I got there the dealership was already on fire. I saw Andy running in. He pulled Whitey out,"_

_Deb's gaze fell onto Whitey, "You set the fire?"_

"_Dan wasn't supposed to be there. I was going to teach him a lesson…but apparently someone already did,"_

_Deb's body tensed up, "What do you mean?" _

"_I mean," Whitey looked directly into Deb's scared eyes, "I wasn't the one who drugged ol' Danny boy,"_

"_Deb," Andy began, "we know it was Whitey who set the fire, but we don't know who drugged Dan,"_

"_And you think I did?"_

_Keith threw a white card onto the coffee table. It was the size of a business card. Deb hesitantly picked it up and turned it over, "For all that you have done," she read. _

"_Dan had that in his hand when I pulled him out," Keith stated, "I recognized the stationary,"_

_Although anyone could have the same stationary, Deb didn't deny it. Instead her face fell, she was guilty. She was the one who laced the bottle of wine and left it on his desk. _

"_Well looks like I wasn't the only one who thought Dan should have been taught a lesson," Whitey smugly remarked. _

_Deb ignored the remark. She was more concerned with the consequence, "So what happens now? Are you guys going to the cops?"_

"_That's what we're here to discuss," Andy stated. _

"_Cops? Are you crazy?" Whitey bellowed, "Danny-boy got what he deserved. You all know it and I know it. The world is a better place without him,"_

"_Whitey…" Deb was feeling remorseful for what she had done. No matter what Dan had done to her or to anyone, it still didn't give them the right to do what they had done. _

"_Don't 'Whitey' me…look at what he did to you, Deb…to Nathan...that boy will turn into a better man without Dan influencing him. He was a disease that needed to be stopped. He infected everyone he came into contact with…Karen, Lucas, you…" Whitey looked directly at Keith, "All your life, you've done nothing but help him out, Keith. And what did he do in return? He walked all over you…treated you as if you meant nothing to him. He played you…he played all of us. Danny-boy liked playing with fire and this time he got burned,"_

_The room became silent again. Nobody dared to look at each other. They all knew the old man was right, but were too scared to admit it. _

"_Alright fine," Whitey finally said, "if we go to the police, I and I alone will take responsibility for this," he sat back into his couch and folded his arms. _

"_Even if you take full responsibility, they're going to wonder about the drugs. They're going to wonder where you got them," Andy pointed out._

_Keith cleared his throat, "We're not going to the cops," All shocking eyes gazed upon him, "I'm not saying what you two did was right...but Nathan shouldn't be the one who pays for your mistake," he directed his last comment to Deb._

_Andy leaned forward, "Alright. I guess it's agreed then. No cops,"_

**End Flashback

* * *

**

She had lost sight of him for a split second. Standing in the Scott's garden, Peyton scanned the crowd of people gathered on the patio. Finally she spotted him entering the house.

Her heels tapped loudly against the expensive hardwood floors. As she passed each door along the hallway, her eyes scanned inside the rooms for him. Alas she found her boyfriend in Dan's office.

Lucas stood in front of his father's trophy case which displayed his most important trophies and pictures. There was one picture that caught his eyes. It was a picture of Dan, Deb and Nathan – a family picture.

He felt her arms slide around his torso and her chin resting gently on his shoulder, "How you doing?"

Lucas let out a sigh, "I'm ok…but I still can't believe he's really gone,"

She nodded her head and loosened her grip, allowing him to turn to face her.

"I know I didn't want anything to do with him, but at the same time, I still had hope, you know…hope that one day maybe he would accept me,"

Peyton understood, "He was your father…it's normal to think that,"

"Yeah, but now that he's gone…"

"Lucas, don't beat yourself up over this. You know the kind of man he was and I saw the kind of father he was to Nathan. You didn't miss out on anything…and you know what? You turned out to be a pretty good guy. You should be proud of your mother because she did a pretty good damn job,"

Lucas smiled down at her. He couldn't agree more – his mother did a 'pretty good damn job'.

* * *

He had missed his own father's funeral. A flight delay made him over an hour late and now there he was, standing at the foot of the freshly buried grave. 

Nathan's eyes were narrow and cold.

"I'm not sure what I'm supposed to be feeling right now. I'm trying to thing of good things to remember you by, but right now I can't remember any…For as long as I can remember, you were always on my case about basketball…morning, day and night,"

Nathan let out a bitter laugh, "You know if it weren't for basketball, I'm not sure if we would have had a relationship,"

Tears began to form in his eyes as his face became serious, "Maybe that's why I tried so hard. But no matter what I did, no matter how hard I tried it was never good enough…It was like you were never proud of me,"

He held back his tears and collected himself, "You want to know the crazy thing? Even with the screwed up relationship we had…I know you loved me…and I love you, dad,"

* * *

A/N: Alright, I think this will tie up the Dan/Fire/Killers storyline...unless you guys think there should be more explaination. Right now I'm working on wrapping up the B/N/H and B/L/P storylines to wrap up the story. 


	19. Chapter 19

Disclaimer: I don't own anything OTH related

* * *

**Chapter 19**

"New Brunswick County Airport – Next Exit" Peyton read the highway sign from the backseat of the car.

As Lucas glanced in his rear view mirror, his eyes fell onto the brunette sitting beside him. He could tell that his best friend was lost in a deep thought.

* * *

**Flashback**

_Nathan was surprised to see Jake open Lucas's front door. Nathan knew Haley was staying at Lucas's over the summer, but he had no idea that Jake was home. They had talked for a few minutes catching up briefly. Jake knew why Nathan was there and made an excuse to leave the house for a few minutes so that Nathan and Haley had some time alone. _

_Haley's back was to the door and assumed that the entering footsteps belonged to Jake. "Can you grab the box by the door?"_

_Nathan looked at the ground and picked up the empty cardboard box. He walked over to Haley and placed it beside her feet. _

"_Thanks, Ja…" Haley looked up, "Nathan!" her immediate reaction caused her to hug him. She had been at the funeral and wake yesterday but didn't see Nathan. She had heard that his flight was delayed. "I'm so sorry,"_

"_Thanks," he sad somberly._

_She pulled back a bit, "How are you? Are you ok?"_

_Nathan nodded, "Yeah…it's hard to believe that he's really gone…" Talking about his father wasn't exactly the thing he wanted to deal with right now. He took a step back and looked around the room. _

"_Are you packing?"_

"_Kinda…Karen's coming home in a few days. I figured I should move out of her room before she comes home,"_

_Nathan nodded, not really hearing what Haley was saying. What he was going to tell her and how he was going to say it clouded his mind. _

"_Haley, we need to talk,"_

_She caught on to his serious tone. Suddenly she regretted her decision to stay in Tree Hill. _

_He motioned her to sit and Nathan sat down beside her on the edge of the bed. "Before I left, I told you that when I came back we could work things out..."_

"_Yeah, you said that you need time to sort things out,"_

"_All summer long, all I could think about was us…everything that happened between us and that we would be able to work things out when I got back, but…"_

"_What do you mean by 'but'?" she cautiously said._

_Nathan scratched his head and sighed, "I don't know…I mean I know when we were together, it felt…right and for the first time, I was happy. I think a part of me is scared to let that go. And I want all of that back again with you. I really do, but I just don't think we can ever go back to the way things were…"_

_Her heart sank. She knew he didn't want to work on their relationship. It was over, but Haley wasn't about to give up…after all, she had turned down a dream tour out of her love for him, "Nathan, we won't know if we don't try. Nathan, I love you,"_

"_Haley…I met someone…"_

_Nathan saw the hurt and anger mix in her eyes as her jaw dropped in surprise. At first she tried to speak but nothing came out. The heartbroken teen tried several more times until finally, "You what?" Haley jumped off the bed. A lump formed in her throat as tears filled her eyes, "I don't believe this…" _

"_Haley, I'm sorry,"_

"_Did you sleep with her?" When Nathan didn't answer, Haley turned around to face him. She saw the guilt in his face. "Get out,"_

"_I'm so sorry, Hales…I didn't mean to…" he stood up at walked towards her.  
_

_It was hard for her to breath. Haley could feel her world crashing down around her. Nothing could be said or done about it, especially by Nathan. It would have been so easy for her to collapse into her arms, but she had to be strong. Haley pushed him away, "I said, get out," she said even more angrily._

**End Flashback**

* * *

Lucas was confused at Haley's sudden change of mind of going on tour. All Lucas knew was that she had initially turned down the offer to start over with Nathan. And when Nathan finally did come home, Haley spent hours on the phone begging her manager to get her back on the tour. Lucky for her, they weren't able to find a replacement in such a short period of time.

Lucas took his eyes off the road for a second and looked at Haley who was sitting beside him, "You sure this is what you want?"

Without hesitating she nodded her head, "Yeah, it is," Haley shifted her gaze from Lucas to the sign outside, marking their exit.

Peyton leaned forward and placed her hand on Haley's shoulder, letting her know that she wasn't alone this time. No matter what would happen, she would always be there.

Haley was glad to have a friend in Peyton…someone she could trust and confide in, other than Lucas. Peyton was also the one person who knew what really happened between Haley and Nathan and she was sworn to secrecy not to tell Lucas. Although she hated secrets, Peyton agreed. She also figured that it would only make things between the brothers even worse.

Lucas pulled the car up to the curb just under the _United Airlines_ departing sign. He quickly unloaded her suitcases from the back while Peyton and Haley said their goodbyes.

"Thanks, Peyton…for everything,"

"Yeah…You just keep in touch this time, you hear?" Peyton said.

"I promise. I couldn't handle losing you as a friend again,"

"You never did and you never will," Peyton smiled, "You're stuck with me. No matter how famous you get, I'll still be collecting royalties for my song,"

Haley rolled her eyes and laughed. She looked over at Lucas who was closing the trunk of the car, "Take care of him, will you?"

Peyton nodded and promised.

With one last hug, the girls finally let go. Peyton smiled at Lucas before heading back into the car, allowing him some private time with his best friend.

"Well, I guess this is it," he said sadly with his arms open.

Haley fell into his arms, "Nah. You can't get rid of me that easily. I'll be back,"

"I'm so proud of you, Hales," he whispered, "I don't know what I'm going to do without you,"

She held back her tears, "Ok, if I don't go now, I'm going to miss my flight,"

"Ok," he let her go, "I love you, Hales,"

"I love you too, Lucas,"

Lucas slowly backed away from Haley. Haley picked up her suitcases then waved and Lucas and Peyton one last time. Before she headed inside, she called out, "Hey Luke, no matter what happens, always listen to your heart,"

He turned his gaze from Haley to the curly blonde sitting in the driver's seat of the car. Her eyes were still fixed on Haley. As Haley walked through the doors and disappeared from sight, a tear fell from her eye. Peyton looked over at Lucas and flashed him a smile, letting him know that things were going to be ok.

With a tilt of her head and with a wide grin, Peyton then dangled the keys into view. She was going to driving home. Sitting in the backseat on the way over was like torture for Peyton. She hated not being the one behind the wheel. Lucas chuckled to himself and shook his head at the crazy girl before making his way to the passenger's side.

* * *

"Peyton, come on…pick up your phone. I need you," Brooke cried into the phone.

She had been trying to get a hold of Peyton for the past few days. Although she had made many new friends in California, they just weren't her best friend. Brooke needed her best friend to talk to about the other night with Nathan.

* * *

**Flashback**

_He had woken up just as the sun was beginning to rise. For the first time in months he let out a smile when he woke up next to the brunette. Being completely sober, Nathan remembered the night clearly. _

_Reality began to set in when Nathan heard his cell phone ringing somewhere in the pile of clothes beside him. It was Haley. _

_A panicked Nathan turned his phone off. Technically, he and Haley were still together. _

"_Brooke," he called out as he started to dress. "Brooke…wake up,"_

"_Hmm…" as she drifted back to consciousness, flashes of the night before flickered in her mind. A smile spread across her face. Then she opened her eyes to see Nathan quickly getting dressed. _

_Brooke sat up and covered herself, looking confused at him. _

"_Brooke, get dressed. We got to go,"_

'_Great. Another one night stand,' Brooke thought to herself. _

**End Flashback

* * *

**

**A/N:** I know it took me a while to update, but it's hard to write non L/P ships for me. Anyways, I wasn't sure how to break up N/H (the other version had Haley leaving and not finding out about N/B) And since I have time tonight, some shoutouts…

luvtheOC09 – I love that you're such a faithful reader. I think you've signed pretty much every chapter! It really does keep me motivated at write.

Song for No One – Originally I had Deb in on Dan's murder, but then I thought if Nathan found out it would probably destroy him. But now that I think about it more, you're right; Deb should have been on it regardless…

RosHillCrosCreekgurl – I'm glad you like the story. I know I totally love Whitey! Some of the things he says on the show are hilarious.

P.Sawyer – I was on a roll with updates last week because I wrote the chapters while I was in class. For some reason its just so much easier to write when I'm supposed to be paying attention to something else . I actually just saw the OTH premiere the other night. I totally love the L/P scenes. They were too cute…I'm hoping something more happened between L/P that they haven't shown yet. But I hate how Lucas is still hung up on Brooke. BTW, have you updated your fics yet?

Anna – thanks for reading. Glad you like it. I know I haven't updated as quickly recently, but hopefully you found other fics to read! P. Sawyer's got a couple of L/P fics.

Qoite – I have a little B/N drama coming up and some LPB troubles too

cabot007 – I love reading your reviews. You have some great feedback and I think you know now the direction of the other couples…and who knows, there may be a third one ;)


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

Exhausted from spending the entire day at the beach and promenade, Peyton collapsed on her bed. The teen didn't even bother to change out of her beach wear and into her pajamas. She was even too tired to pull the covers over her body. But with a smile on her face, Peyton closed her eyes, remembering her day and welcoming sleep.

* * *

**Flashback**

_Peyton kicked off her sandals and unbuttoned her jean skirt. Lucas watched as the skirt fell down to her ankles. She removed her shirt and turned around. Finally she noticed that Lucas wasn't paying attention to anything to what she was saying. _

_Peyton rolled her eyes and flung her shirt into his face, "Pay attention, Luke," she laughed. _

_Her shirt fell from his face, revealing his smirk, "I was…just not to what you were saying,"_

"_I said," Peyton sat down on the beach blanket beside her boyfriend who was clearly enjoying his view of his girlfriend in a bikini, "it's actually nice to come to the beach during the day," Although they had walked miles on the beach during that summer, they had not once set foot on it when the sun was out._

"_Definitely," Lucas agreed eagerly, "I mean if I knew we'd be wearing fewer clothing…"_

_Peyton elbowed him before he could finish talking, "Anyways…did you bring the sunblock?"_

_Lucas rummaged through his bag. Instead of pulling out the sun block, he pulled out her cell phone, "Here…I think you left it at my place the other night,"_

"_I knew I didn't lose it," Peyton took the phone as he continued to search through his bag; "The battery is dead. Guess I'll check my messages when I get home," Peyton tossed the phone into her bag._

**End Flashback

* * *

**

Their day together was perfect. They didn't worry about anything. Nothing or no one even crossed their minds. Not Brooke, Nathan, Haley, Jake or their parents. It was just about the two of them. Although they didn't want the day to end, they also knew they had another two weeks of summer left. That meant another two weeks before they had to face everything.

Just before falling into a deep slumber, a loud knock at the front door jolted her awake. "Go away," she mumbled, hoping in some way that the person at the door would hear her. They didn't. Instead the pounding got louder and more frequent.

All the way down the stairs, she cursed the person at the door. Whoever it was at the door better have a good excuse for disturbing her sleep. Peyton flung the door open. Her annoyed eyes grew wide in surprise. She wasn't supposed to be home for another two weeks, but there she was, "Brooke,"

* * *

**Flashback**

_He had only gone into the water for a few minutes before he got bored. It just wasn't fun swimming on his own. Lucas trudged through the sand back to Peyton, who was busy making a sandcastle. _

_She had three walls already up when he plopped himself beside her. Peyton was too busy detailing her castle to see his pouting face, but she didn't have to see it. She knew he was pouting. Before he went in, he had begged her to go in. _

"_Peeeeyton," Lucas tried to get her attention. _

_Without looking up, Peyton replied, "I told you I don't want to get my hair wet. These curls take a long time to look like this, ya know,"_

_His tone wasn't playful anymore. It was quiet and serious, "Even without the curls, you'd still look beautiful," _

_It was only a simple compliment, but it was the way he said it that made her accidentally knock down half a wall before she froze. She bit on her bottom lip when she tried to conceal her smile but she couldn't hide her blushing cheeks. She couldn't figure out how he always managed to make her feel like that. _

**End Flashback

* * *

**

Peyton could still feel it. The sensation in her gut tingled every time she merely just thought about him. But seeing Brooke standing right there on her front steps extinguished the feeling – a feeling she never wanted to let go.

"P. Sawyer," Brooke began angrily, "You have some nerve. I go away for three months and you forget all about me. What kinda best friend are you?"

Peyton shifted uncomfortably.

"Well…aren't you going to invite me in? You're just lucky I need a place to stay for a few nights, otherwise I just wouldn't let you off the hook that easily,"

Still speechless, Peyton moved out of the way so Brooke could enter.

"You know, you had me scared to death. I thought you died or something. I mean you wouldn't return my phone calls. You didn't come pick me up at the airport and then when I get here, you wouldn't answer the door, not to mention the fact that I almost broke a nail pounding on it…and what the hell happened to your hair? Did you switch hair products again?"

Peyton had gotten her hair wet at the beach – or rather Lucas did when he tackled her in the water. Nonetheless, Peyton let out a breath as she was somewhat relieved. At least Brooke wasn't mad about her relationship with Lucas, yet.

* * *

**Flashback**

_Peyton shivered as the sun began to set over the water. After grabbing a quick meal at a diner near the beach, the couple had returned to the sands to watch the sun go down. _

"_Cold?" Lucas asked. _

"_Just a bit," she wrapped her arms around her, trying to trap in her body heat. _

"_Come here," _

_Peyton moved towards him and sat down in front of him. Gently she leaned into his chest as his arms wrapped around her. Her head lay comfortable against his shoulder. Lucas smiled down at her. _

"_Better?" he asked._

"_Much," Peyton answered as she nestled closer to his body, feeling his body heat._

"_Good," Lucas leaned in and placed a lingering kiss on the side of her forehead. He could smell the ocean mixed with her strawberry scented shampoo in her now frizzy hair._

"_What are you thinking about?" he asked when he finally noticed that Peyton wasn't really watching the end of a beautiful day. _

_Peyton sighed, "That I wish this day could last forever…I know it's a stupid girly thing…"_

"_It's not stupid," Lucas said, "And it's definitely not girly…cause I'm wishing the same exact thing,"_

_She shifted her gaze from the stars to his eyes. For the hundredth time that day, her heart pounded quickly in her chest and her cheeks blushed. The smile across her face lit up. Finally, her lips reached up and met his. _

**End Flashback

* * *

**

As Brooke lugged her suit cases into the Sawyer residence, Peyton ran straight into her room. She scoured every wall for any sketches or photos that detailed her summer spent with Lucas.

"P. Sawyer," Brooke yelled from the middle of the staircase as she struggled with an enormous suitcase, "A little help would be nice,"

"Um…just a second," Peyton yelled back. With sketches and frames piled in her arms, she quickly scanned the room for a hiding spot. Quickly she made her way to her sacred albums and randomly shoved pictures anywhere she could. Her album collection would be one place where Brooke wouldn't touch.

Taking a deep breath, Peyton closed her closet doors and took one last look around the room. Satisfied that there wasn't anything else, Peyton went to help Brooke move in.

* * *

Peyton lay nervously beside her best friend. She was wide away now. Scenarios of how Brooke would react when she found out about her Lucas wouldn't let her sleep. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad. Maybe a summer a way from Tree Hill made Brooke forget about Lucas…

"Peyton, do you think Lucas still wants a chance with me?"

…or not, Peyton thought.

Brooke sat up, "Peyton, I think that I want a serious relationship now. I'm tired of one night stands and flirting with a different guy every night. I don't wan to be that party girl anymore,"

"Brooke…" Peyton was riddled with guilt.

"You know, this summer, I thought I could have that but…" the moon's rays that entered the room through the lone window, lit up Brooke's fallen tears.

Seeing that something was wrong, Peyton sat up and put her hand on Brooke's shoulder, "What happened Brooke?"

Brooke shook her head, "I met this guy and over the summer we talked and become friends…I tried so hard not to fall for him, but I did…and…God, how can I be so stupid,"

"Brooke…you're not stupid…ok, those guys are stupid. You Brooke Davis are a beautiful girl who knows how to have fun in life and if they're not man enough to keep up with you, then they're not worth it...they're just not the right guy for you,"

"I guess," Brooke thought, "I'm just glad to be home, P. Sawyer. By the way where have you been the past few weeks? I've been calling and calling but you where never around,"

"Yeah…sorry. I um, lost my phone for a while and I just got it back today but the battery was dead,"

"Whatever. I'm just glad I'm back with my best friend…ho's over bros," Brooke stuck out a fist.

Peyton uneasily looked at the fist and then at Brooke. Hesitantly, she quickly knocked her knuckles with hers, but refused to nod or agree with the pact. Guiltily, Peyton sank back down into her bed. She didn't want to lose her best friend again but she didn't want to give up Lucas either.

* * *

The next morning Peyton awoke alone in her bed. Was Brooke coming home just a dream? Lazily, the blonde got out of bed and headed towards her bathroom.

"Ow, damnit," Peyton yelled when she painfully stubbed her big toe. Hopping on her uninjured foot Peyton saw what hit her toe; a black Gucci suitcase. Brooke coming home early wasn't a dream – it was a nightmare.

Repeatedly on her fully charged cell phone, Peyton tried to call Lucas to warn him. There wasn't any answer each time she called, "Get your ass out of bed and answer the phone, Luke," she muttered.

Screeching to a halt, she finally pulled up to Lucas's house.

* * *

With just a towel around his waist, Lucas entered his room. He was about to pull the towel off to get dressed for the day when he saw the grinning face. It nearly gave him a heart attack.

Somehow he managed to keep the towel up, covering the appropriate place with his two hands. Brooke let out a laugh, "Are you happy to see me?"

"Brooke, wh…what are you doing here?" he gulped.

Brooke got up from the bed and slowly walked towards him. Lucas quickly retied his towel on tight and grabbed the closest shirt he could find.

"You know about three months ago, in this very room, you asked me to stay…and just right over there," she pointed to the middle of the room, "You kissed me,"

"Ah, Brooke…it,"

"Shh…"she put her finger on his lips, "I made a mistake Lucas. I shouldn't have left,"

Lucas took a step back, but Brooke walked forward.

"Brooke, I really think we should talk,"

"I'm tired of talking,"

Brooke had him trapped against wall. Before he knew it, her lips were on his. His lips only responded one way – and that was to immediately to pull away. But he wasn't fast enough to catch sight of the curly blonde who was running away from his doorway.


	21. Chapter 21

Hey guys…sorry for the unusually long update. I've just been busy with midterms and I haven't really been in the writing mood. But I think I'm slowly starting to get it back. I've been thinking about another story…

Anyways, I hope you remember what happened in the previous chapters and aren't too disappointed with this chapter. I had written so many different scenarios before I decided to cut and paste some scenarios together….I hope it makes sense!

* * *

**Chapter 21**

Now fully dressed, Lucas dialed Peyton's number on the kitchen phone. Lucas impatiently waited for her to pick up her house phone. Lucas needed to talk to Peyton about Brooke. He was more than surprised to find Brooke waiting for him in his bedroom just minutes earlier. After realizing that Lucas didn't want to be with her, Brooke took off, hurt and embarrassed.

"Hi," Lucas froze when he heard Brooke's voice, "you've reached Brooke Davis…obviously I'm not here. So leave one and maybe I'll get back to you…oh you can leave a message for Peyton or Larry too, I guess…"

Instead of leaving a message, Lucas hung up and tried Peyton's cell. Not a second after it started to ring in his ear, he heard the familiar Dashboard Confessional ring tone. He pulled the receiver from his ear and listened. The ring tone went off again.

"Damn, she left her cell phone here again," Lucas swore as he hung up the phone.

As he made his way to his bedroom to find her cell phone, Lucas grabbed a light jacket from the hall closet. If he couldn't get a hold of Peyton by phone, he was going to have to look for her.

"Geez!" Lucas jumped back and grabbed his beating heart. For the second time that morning, he walked into this bedroom to find a girl sitting on his bed.

Peyton smirked, "You should really start locking that door,"

"Or other people could start knocking,"

"Other people?"

"Yeah, other people…you, on the other hand, are welcome any time….anyways, I was trying to call you,"

"I know," Peyton took her cell out of her pocket and let out an uneasy laugh before putting it away.

"How come you didn't answer…or at least let me know that you were here?" Lucas sat down beside her.

Peyton, somewhat uncomfortably, scooted away from him. A serious vibe fell over the two of them. "Brooke's home,"

Lucas sighed, "I know…she was here,"

Peyton nodded. She wanted to ask Lucas about the kiss, but at the same time she wondered if he would tell her on his own.

"She kissed me…but judging from you reaction…you already knew that,"

Her eyes looked down. She was guilty.

"Hey," he reached out for her hand and leaned down to catch her eyes, "You have nothing to worry about. It…"

"…didn't mean anything," Peyton nodded and looked up, "I know. I saw you pull away…"

"You saw?"

"Yeah, I was trying to warn you that Brooke was home, but when I got to your door, she had you cornered…impeccable timing, right?"

Lucas chuckled, "You could say that,"

"You know, I trust you completely…it's just that…seeing you two like that…I don't know, it just hurts,"

"Does it hurt because you saw me with another girl or was it because you don't want to see Brooke get hurt,"

Peyton shrugged, "Both?"

He closed the gap between them, "Look, I don't want to hurt Brooke either…and maybe it's my fault for leading her on but at the same time, I can't help how I feel…and I don't want to hide it,"

"I know…I'm going to tell her,"

Lucas watched Peyton stand up, "I thought we were going to do it together,"

"I think after this morning…it'll be better if I do it alone,"

He nodded. "Kay," Lucas stood up and walked his girl to the door, "Call me afterwards?"

After some hesitation, Peyont agreed, "Yeah,"

She stepped throught the threshold when she felt his hand on hers, pulling her back. Slowly her eyes lifted until they contacted his concerened stare. "Are you ok?" he asked.

"Yeah," she whispered, but as she continued to look at him, she couldn't lie to him. She closed her eyes and shook her head. Her top teeth bit on her lower lip to keep it from trembling.

"Hey," he soothinlgy said as he pulled her tight into his body, "It's going to be ok, Peyt. I promise,"

Peyton pulled away and tried to give him smile, pretending to believe his promise. She wanted to be alone, "Yeah...I better go,"

"Peyt..." he tried to call her bluff but even she knew that he knew.

"I'll call you later,"

* * *

It was now late in the afternoon and Peyton found herself sitting alone on the grassy knoll that overlooked Rivercourt, where Lucas was playing on the court down below. He had no idea that she was there and it was exactly what she wanted. Peyton just wanted some time alone. After leaving Lucas's that morning, Peyton ended up at the hill rather then at her house, where Brooke mostly like was.

Not many people knew it about it. It was one of Tree Hill's best kept secrets – it not only looked over the Rivercourt, but it gave a spectacular view of the waterfront and downtown Tree Hill. It was also quiet and peaceful – the way Peyton liked it.

Her newest sketch stared back at her. A lone square was drawn in the centre of the page. Inside it was nothing. "EMPTY" was written across the top. It was the simplest drawing she had ever done and yet it revealed her exact feeling. And at that very moment, feeling nothing inside was good. She knew facing Brooke would bring an onslaught of emotions – not just on her but for everyone involved.

A familiar sound rang in the distance. It was her ring tone. Purposely Peyton had left her phone in the car, but she knew who it was. She looked down on to the court and saw Lucas standing over by the picnic table with a cell phone to his ear.

With a sigh, Peyton tore the sketch out her book, crumpled it up and tossed it aside. It was inevitable but she was going to delay it as long as possible.

"Hey, do you know you're phone is ringing?"

Peyton looked over her shoulder to see Nathan approaching. She hadn't heard his footsteps on the soft grass.

"What are you doing here?" Peyton asked bitterly. Ever since Haley had told her that Nathan slept with another girl in California, Peyton angrily avoided him.

But her snappiness didn't faze him. He had known Peyton for a long time, so her being in a bad mood was nothing new. "Just wanted a quiet place to think,"

"Well, I was here first and I'd like to be alone right now,"

Nathan scoffed, "I showed you this place, remember? So technically this place is mine,"

"Whatever," Peyton started to pack up. She couldn't deal with him right now.

"Hey, you know if you have a problem with Lucas then don't take it out on me,"

"Oh and what if I have a problem with you?"

"Me? What did I do?"

"Like you don't know…I know what you did in California," Peyton spat out, "Haley was going to give up a tour for you, Nate. She loved you. You know its bad enough that you had her waiting here for basically nothing but then you had to go off and…"

"Brooke told you?"

Peyton was confused, "Brooke? What does Brooke have to do with this?"

He didn't have to answer his nervous face said it all.

"No…Nathan…" she said in disbelief. Nathan had spent the whole summer at _High Flyers_ in California, where Brooke was also staying. Nathan had come home and confessed that had slept with a girl while Brooke had come home heartbroken and insecure about her relationship with boys. Neither had mentioned each others names but Peyton put the pieces of the puzzle together, "Tell me that girl you slept with wasn't Brooke,"

* * *

With nowhere else to go, Brooke had sought solace on Peyton's bed. She lay there alone, clutching a pillow tightly. Brooke never felt so dejected and lonely before, it wasn't something she was used to. But there she was, rejected by two Scott boys in the same week and no friend to comfort her.

These depressing feelings were finally getting to the usually cheery brunette. Usually it was her who was trying to cheer up a brooding Peyton who was always listening to some sort of depressing song. Peyton had always said that music isn't depressing…it's comforting.

"What the hell, P. Sawyer, I'll give it a shot," Brooke said to herself as she crawled out of the bed and headed towards Peyton's music collection, "You're better at this brooding thing than I am,"

* * *

"Does Haley know it was Brooke?"

Nathan shook his head.

Peyton let out a long sigh, "Do you really care about Brooke?"

Nathan nodded his head, "Yeah, I do. It's weird, you know, I've known Brooke for a long time…but I don't think I ever knew her, till this summer," he took a breath, "I never thought I could feel this way about anyone except for Haley…but Haley and I both changed. Not just over the summer, but before that. And to tell you the truth I think we both knew that…"

"So what are you going to do?"

"What can I do? Both of them hate me. They won't take my calls,"

"Well, you can try talking at least one of them face to face…Brooke's home,"

The news slowly sank in his head. When it finally settled, Nathan quickly stood up and headed for his car.

"Wait," Peyton called out to him, "I think I should talk to her first,"

* * *

"Brooke?" Peyton yelled from the bottom of the stairs. The blonde heard a loud bang come from upstairs, "Brooke?" she called out again as she worriedly ran up the stairs, two at a time.

At the top of the stairs, Peyton turned down the hallway leading to her room but stopped immediately. Clothes and random objects where scattered all over the hallway. Cautiously Peyton took a step forward. As she made her way down the hall, she recognized the clothes. They belonged to her.

She was about to enter the room to face the culprit when a paint brush came flying out. It smacked against the adjacent wall and bounced to the floor, snapping in half. Seeing the broken brush angered Peyton and she stormed into the room.

"What the hell is going on?" Peyton yelled. Across the room she saw Brooke with an arm full of Peyton's clothes. "What are you doing?"

Brooke threw an icy glare at her, "Helping you move," she flung the clothes across the room, "I can't sleep next to a lying back stabber,"

"Brooke…"

"No…don't 'Brooke' me," she yelled, "You were supposed to be my best friend. How could you do this…AGAIN?"

"Do what again?" Peyton had a feeling that this was about Lucas but wanted to make sure.

Brooke scoffed, "Like you don't know. Well let's paint you a picture," Brooke picked up some papers off the table, "Oh wait, looks like you already did," she then angrily threw them.

As they floated down on to the ground, Peyton saw a couple of the drawings. They were the drawings of her and Lucas that she had hidden in her records.

"It's not like that," Peyton defended.

"Oh, it's not? Let me see…Lucas wanted me and then all of a sudden you want decide that you want him too," Brooke pretended to think, "Now was that last year or just recently…oh wait! It was both times,"

Peyton shifted uncomfortably, not because Brooke was right, but because Brooke had no idea how wrong she was. Telling Brooke the truth would only hurt Brooke more. How could she tell her best friend that Lucas didn't really have feelings for her without hurting her?

"I'm sorry, Brooke. We never meant for it to happen," she sighed, "But it did…Brooke he was there for me when I needed someone to talk to…"

"Well what about me? I was your best friend,"

"You were 3000 miles away! And every time I called you, I got your voicemail,"

Brooke crossed her arms. She knew, from Nathan, that Peyton had gone through a lot over the summer. A part of her was actually happy to know that Peyton had someone to lean on, but the other part of her was upset. Brooke was more confused than ever.

"You know, you were supposed to be my best friend, Peyton,"

"I still am, Brooke,"

"Then where were you when I needed you?" Brooke cried.

"I'm here now,"

Brooke rolled her eyes. "I need a friend, not a lying bitch,"

"Ok, first of all, I never lied to you…We were going to tell you when you were supposed to come back two weeks from now…but then you suddenly showed up and you started talking about Lucas again…I didn't know what to say," Peyton paused, thinking about everything that had happened ever since Brooke showed up on her front steps. Her voice was more calm, "Secondly, is this even about me and Lucas? Or is this about Nathan?"

Brooke looked away. Her anger seemed to dissipate as a feeling of sadness and loneliness started to overwhelm her emotions. She knew Peyton was right. She wasn't in love with Lucas, she was in love with Nathan. But either way, Brooke still felt lost because neither of the Scott brothers loved her back.

"Get out. I don't want to see you right now," she turned her back and stared angrily at the wall.

Even though it was Peyton's room, Peyton backed off, at least for now. With tears slipping from her eyes, Peyton took a few steps forward and choked out, "I know you're hurting right now…and maybe you feel betrayed, but I promise you Brooke I would never do that to you again. And no matter what I am always here for you,"

A few seconds had passed before Brooke turned around, "Peyton?" But Peyton wasn't there. She had left. Brooke stood alone in the empty room.


	22. Chapter 22

Thanks for the awesome reviews. I'm so glad that you guys are still reading it and are liking it. I think this story is taking a life of it's own. I had a different ending for this chapter in mind, but for some reason it ended it like this. But no need to worry...everything will work out in the end.

* * *

**Chapter 22**

After leaving her house and Brooke that late afternoon, Peyton had gone for a drive. Driving was another way for Peyton to clear her mind but even after an hour of driving, with no particular destination, her troubles refused to go away.

The thought of picking between her best friend and her current boyfriend never crossed her mind. Peyton refused to pick because she couldn't. Both Brooke and Lucas were a very important part of her life and she would always need them both. That didn't mean to say that she didn't care how Brooke was feeling. In fact, it was quite the opposite. Peyton would do almost anything to make it all go away for her.

With a loud sigh, she slowed the car down and eased off the road. She wasn't ready to talk before, but she was now. After putting the car in park, Peyton sat there and stared straight ahead of her for a few seconds before leaning forward to turn the blaring music down. She leaned back into her seat. Then, she slowly looked up and turned to the boy who was sitting next to her.

Before going for a long drive, Peyton stopped by the Rivercourt to pick up Lucas. When he saw first saw her pull up, Lucas saw the look in her eyes and immediately knew that things didn't go over well with Brooke. He quickly gathered his belongings off the bleachers and got into the passenger side of her car. The music was turned up and the blonde didn't look at him when he got in. Lucas knew that Peyton didn't want to be alone but she also wasn't ready to talk about it yet. Although he was concerned and wondered what exactly was said, he kept quiet and waited patiently for Peyton to be ready.

* * *

Brooke was fed up. She hated feeling sad and rejected. Something had to be done and she knew exactly what would cheer her up. The old 'Brooke Davis' never got her heart stomped on and never lost her best friend. Determined to be that girl with a protected heart again, Brooke picked up her cell phone and scrolled through her phone book for a number.

* * *

She was now cuddled up beside him, all cried out.

"It's my fault," she sniffed.

"It's not your fault, Peyton. It's no one's fault,"

"I should have told her last night…I should have hidden our pictures better…I should…"

"Should stop worrying so much," he interrupted, "Brooke just needs time. She needs to realize that you didn't do anything wrong…and when she finally realizes that…" Lucas leaned his head forward to get a better view of her face and hoped to see a smile. "…you'll forget all about poor little old me,"

Peyton rolled her eyes and let out a smile, "It's always about you, isn't it?" she sarcastically joked.

"If it gets a smile out of you, then yes, yes it is," He leaned back and placed a gentle kiss on the top of her curls, "She'll come around, Peyt," He then gently rested his head on hers and he wrapped his arms around her tighter. "I promise, it'll work out,"

Even though she knew he couldn't really promise her that, Peyton did have hope for it.

Suddenly a Dashboard Confessional ring tone went off. Peyton bolted up and grabbed her phone, hoping that it was Brooke, but it wasn't.

"Shoot," Peyton muttered, "I forgot about him,"

Lucas's eyebrows furrowed, "Him?"

Peyton flashed a quick smile and held up her index finger, indicating that she'd explain in a minute.

"Hey, Nathan," she said into the tiny mic.

"Did you talk her yet?" Nathan said impatiently.

"Yeah…but listen, she found out about Lucas and I on her own and she went ballistic. I didn't have a chance to talk to her about you…I'm sorry,"

He was somewhat disappointed, but then thought better of the situation, "No, it's probably for the best. I think it's better if I told her myself,"

"Yeah, I hope things work out you,"

"Yeah, me too. I'll talk to you later, Peyton and thanks,"

Peyton ended the call and remained frozen for a few seconds. She didn't forget that Lucas was in the car. She was just trying to figure out a way to tell him what had happened between Nathan and Brooke over the summer, which also happened to be the deciding factor for Haley to go back on tour.

Finally, Lucas broke the silence, "Peyton, what's going on?"

She bit down her bottom lip.

His voice wasn't angry, just confused, "Why would you talk to Brooke about Nathan?"

"Lucas…" she began.

* * *

Nathan had just turned onto Peyton's street. He was three houses away from the Sawyer residence when he noticed someone standing on the front steps of the house. It was a rather tall boy with brown hair and wearing a Bobcat's basketball jersey.

Nathan stopped mid-stride as he strained to see who the boy was but he couldn't see his face. Taking a few steps closer, Nathan finally noticed the name on the jersey was that of an NBA player. It read, 'Feday'. It was Aaron Feday – a power forward for the Tree Hill Raven's basketball team.

He didn't have time to process it any further when he saw the door finally open. He watched on, horrified, as Brooke emerged from the house, wearing a top with a very low v-cut and a pair of rather tight jeans. Nathan had to admit to himself that while Brooke did look good, the sight also made him sick.

Brooke took Feday's hand and led him towards his car. With a huge smile plastered on the boy's excited face, Feday opened the passenger side door for Brooke and helped her in.

* * *

"Luke, say something. Please," Peyton pleaded as she followed him up the steps of his porch.

Ever since Peyton had told him about Haley, Nathan and Brooke, Lucas had only said three words to her: 'Take me home,'

Lucas stormed up to his front door and fumbled through his keys for the right one.

"Lucas, stop. Please," Peyton reached for his hands, but he quickly moved them away. Lucas turned and finally faced Peyton. The anger in his eyes made her stomach turn nervously.

"You knew all this time…that Haley really left because of what Nathan did. How could you not tell me?"

"Because it wasn't my place to tell," Peyton defended, "Besides, Haley told me not to tell you,"

"Does she even know that it was Brooke who Nathan slept with?"

Peyton looked down and shook her head. "I just found out it was Brooke today,"

Lucas disgustedly shook his head and muttered. "That bastard isn't going to get away with this,"

"Lucas, don't,"

"Why are you defending him? I thought Haley was your friend,"

"She is! And I hated seeing her hurt like that, but honestly…I think this was the best thing that happened to her,"

"Or for you…"

"What? What has this got to do with me?"

"Don't you get it? Brooke is pissed off at the world right now and it's all because of Nathan,"

"Don't even go there, Luke," she warned.

"But if you help Nathan get Brooke, then Brooke will be happy and then suddenly you'll be best friends again, won't you? Haley deserves better. She deserves a better friend. God, Peyton, how could you be so selfish?"

Peyton's head shook in disbelief. She wanted to respond but she was too choked up. It not only angered her, but it hurt her knowing that her boyfriend thought of her as a selfish and inconsiderate girl. As her lips quivered, Peyton held up her arms, surrendering the argument and walked away. After an emotional day, she didn't think she had any tears left in her but somehow, they still managed to flow freely down her tear-stained face as she walked to her car alone.


	23. Chapter 23

I reread the last part of the previous chapter and it did come out harsher than I intended...but we all make mistakes ;) It did, however, motivate me to get this chapter up faster. Hope you like this one more.

* * *

**  
**

**Chapter 23**

The lone light from the kitchen guided her through the dark house. Feeling the cool 4AM air, she wrapped her arms around herself to keep from shivering. She let out a tired yawn just as she entered the kitchen.

"Couldn't sleep either?" she asked without even looking to see who was sitting at the kitchen counter.

"Nope," Nathan said as took a bit of his pop-tart.

Peyton opened a cupboard and scanned its contains for something to eat, "Dude, don't tell me you ate the last pop-tart,"

"Well, I was going to," Nathan gently pushed his plate, with the last remaining S'mores pop-tart towards her.

Peyton grinned happily. "Thanks, Nate," she picked up the plate and took a seat beside Nathan. "Thanks for letting me crash here tonight, by the way. After my night with Lucas, I don't think I could have handled facing Brooke,"

"Yeah, no problem," Nathan took a sip of his milk, "At least your phone stopped ringing,"

"You heard it?"

"Yep…like once every hour…but I think it was going off once every 15 minutes at one point,"

"Sorry," she crinkled her nose, slightly embarrassed, "I hope it didn't keep you up,"

"Nah, I was up," he had been up thinking about Brooke."So did you finally talk to him?"

Suddenly she didn't feel like eating anymore. Peyton put the pastry down and shook her head no.

"Love sucks," she finally said, pushing her plate away.

"Yup," Nathan said, reaching for her uneaten pop tart, "Want me to kick his ass?"

Peyton rolled her eyes, "What's with guys and kicking each other's asses? You know it won't solve anything,"

"No, but it'll be fun," they both laughed.

"Look," Nathan continued, "Lucas has this complex of some sort…he feels that he has to protect everyone he cares about…stick up for them, whatever…but at the same time, he also ends up hurting the other people he cares about,"

"Sounds like you're speaking from experience,"

Nathan only responded with a nod.

"Do you think you'll ever forgive him for going after Dan like that?"

"Will you?"

* * *

Later that afternoon Peyton and Nathan found themselves browsing through albums in the downtown record shop. Peyton was in the back of the store flipping through the used vinyl records while Nathan was near the front looking at the CDs in the 'new releases' wall.

Since they had been in the store for almost 45 minutes, Nathan wasn't really 'looking'. He had already read the same titles at least 8 times. Nathan sighed as he saw that Peyton was only on the letter 'L'. He had hoped that in the last five minutes that she would be at least on 'N' but since he had nothing else to do that day, he was going to be patient.

Nathan was about to go back to his 'browsing' when he saw Lucas walking by the front window. He kept his eye on his older brother, hoping that he wouldn't look into the store.

* * *

Lucas was almost past the shop when he happened to glance in. Almost immediately, he saw her curls. His feet stopped walking and walked him closer to the window. It was Peyton. Without another hesitation, he quickly turned around to head for the doors. His foot barely made it to the first step when Lucas noticed that someone was already standing on the front steps of the store.

The blonde looked up to see his younger brother glaring at him. Nathan stood there as if he was waiting for Lucas, "Don't even think about it," Nathan said coldly.

"Get out of my way," Lucas said through his teeth, "I'll deal with you later,"

"You're going to deal with me later?" Nathan scoffed.

"I need to talk to Peyton,"

"No. What you need to do is to turn around and walk away,"

"I can't do that, Nate,"

"Look at her Luke. She's fine right now,"

"She may look ok but you and I both know how's she's really feeling,"

"And whose fault is that?"

"Just get out of my way before…"

Nathan stepped down, causing Lucas to back up a few steps, "Or you'll what?" he dared.

"This has nothing to do with you, Nathan,"

"That's where you're wrong, Luke. I told you that if you ever hurt her again, you'd have me to answer to,"

"Funny, didn't I say something like that to you about Haley?"

* * *

Meanwhile, back inside the record store, Peyton was oblivious to the argument that was quickly escalating between the two Scott brothers. She was about to move on to the 'N' section when the teenaged cashier, who was waiting for the first punch to be thrown, yelled, "Fight!"

Peyton turned around to see what the commotion was about. She saw a bunch of boys standing near the doorway, all trying to get out of the store to watch the fight that was taking place just outside. She rolled her eyes. She didn't understand what the point was in watching others fight.

Remembering that Nathan was with her, she quickly scanned the room for him. He wasn't there. Curiously she made her way to the front. Up on the tips of her toes, Peyton strained to see the brunette boy. Finally, she caught a glimpse of him outside. Her jaw dropped and her eyes widened when she realized that Nathan was fighting Lucas.

With adrenaline pumping through her body, Peyton pushed and shoved everyone who was in her away aside to get to the fighting brothers.

"Hey! Stop it!" She yelled several times and even whistled loudly for them to stop but the two boys continued fighting. She finally had enough and waited for a chance to step in without getting hit by a stray fist.

The opportunity finally arose and Peyton grabbed each boy on the back of their arms, near their triceps. At first, they didn't really seem to notice, not until she started to pinch the sensitive flesh.

"OW," they both screamed and dropped their fists. Both of them tried to wriggle free, but Peyton just squeezed harder. "Ow...Peyton, Stop...Ow!"

The crowd of boys watching the fight groaned disappointed that the fight was already over. Annoyed, Peyton let go of Lucas and Nathan and turned to face the boys. She dared the boys to make another sound. But they were all too scared to see what would happened to them if they did. So instead, the on lookers quickly dispersed, going back to their own business.

"What the hell are you guys doing?" Peyton yelled at Lucas and Nathan who were both holding on to the back of their arms where she had pinched.

"He started it," the two brothers said at the same time, blaming each other.

"Whatever," Peyton wasn't going to deal with their immaturity. She opened up her purse and took out a package of Kleenex. Peyton removed a few plys and handed it over to Lucas to wipe the blood on his split lip.

"Thanks," he said. Lucas tried to make eye contact with her, but she was able to elude his apologetic eyes.

Peyton nodded and then looked at Nathan. He didn't appear to be bleeding, but instead his right eye was beginning to swell. "Let's go, Nathan. Take me home," she took Nathan's hand and started to pull him away.

"Peyt, wait," Lucas called out.

Still upset with him, Peyton kept on walking until she felt a tug on her arm, stopping her in her tracks. Nathan had stopped walking. Slowly she turned and looked up at Nathan with confusion.

"You should probably talk to him. Just hear him out at least," Peyton didn't move. "I'll wait over there,"

Nathan looked back at Lucas before walking to the spot where he said he'd wait.

Peyton crossed her arms as Lucas approached her. He wiped his lip one last time before shoving his hands into his pockets.

Lucas was about to speak when Peyton interrupted him, "I don't want to hear some stupid quote from some book or some person,"

He was surprised at first at her comment but then he realized that Peyton knew him just as well as he knew her. Almost everything he said or did was based on someone else's words and she didn't want that. She didn't want to hear someone else's words or Lucas's rehearsed speech. She wanted to hear Lucas.

"I'm sorry, Peyton. I know it's not an excuse but when you told me that Haley left because of what he did and then defended him, I…I just got upset. I never meant what I said…I…"

"I know," Peyton said quietly. "I know you didn't mean it but it still hurts, Luke. It hurts that you said it and knowing that you even thought it,"

"I was an ass and I was out of line," he admitted. "I know it hurt you and I am so sorry. I don't know what I can do to make it up to you, but just say it and I'll do it…I'll do anything to erase the last 24 hours,"

She bit her lip as she watched him unfold her arms and held her hands. Slowly his head neared hers until his forehead lightly rested on hers.

"Please forgive me, Peyton,"

Peyton closed her eyes and let out a sigh. Then she nodded her head.

Lucas grinned happily and then winced as he split the cut on his lip wider. Peyton shook her head and laughed. Gently she placed a kiss on his cheek and looped her arm through his. "Come on; let's get the both of you cleaned up,"

"Peyton, I don't think…"

"Hey, you said you'd anything for me, remember?"

"Yeah, but…"

"Well, you can start by getting along with Nathan again,"

Reluctantly, Lucas agreed. It was going to be hard to get on good terms with his brother again, but he did promise to make it up to Peyton and he wasn't going to let her down again.


	24. Chapter 24

Hey guys! Here's a quick update. There's only two chapters left to this story, so things are wrapping up now. I do have another story in the works...just got to work out a few kinks and write a few more chapters; it's basically about L/P's history (lots of flashbacks...hopefully it won't get too confusing like my last story). It may also be a Christmas fic, since I'm starting to get into the holiday mood. Anyways, hope you enjoy the rest of this story:

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**Chapter 24**

They were having lunch on the patio of a restaurant on the promenade. Lucas, Peyton and Nathan had just ordered drinks and were still waiting for one more friend to arrive. Peyton excused herself to go to the bathroom, leaving Lucas and Nathan alone at the table. When she was out of sight, the two boys sighed and leaned back into their seats. Neither of them said a word to each other, nor did they make eye contact.

They weren't exactly friends again but appearances are sometimes deceiving, especially in front of Peyton. Lucas and Nathan had decided to call a truce for Peyton's sake. She had been through a rollercoaster of emotions this summer and once she thought the ride was over, Brooke threw in loop. The brothers both cared for Peyton and agreed to act at least civil towards each other.

"Hey, guys," Jake said as he entered the patio. "Sorry, I'm late. Jenny was having a fit,"

Lucas smiled happy to see someone he could actually talk too, "Hey, don't worry about it. Glad you could make it,"

Nathan nodded at Jake, "Hey,"

Jake had just sat down in a seat beside Nathan when he finally noticed Nathan's black eye and Lucas's split lip. "What happened to you guys? Get in a fight or something?"

Lucas was about to answer when they heard the familiar voice, "Well, well, well. What do we have here?" It was Brooke and following close behind was Bevin. "Oh look Bevin, it's the three boys who are wrapped around Peyton's little finger,"

"Hey, guys!" Bevin said cheerily which only caused Brooke to throw her a glare.

The brunette turned her attention back at the boys. Neither one of them had said a word. Lucas was too busy shaking his head in disbelief. Nathan refused to look at Brooke and casted a glare at the table. Jake, on the other hand, was surprised not just that Brooke was back, but also at her comment. He was unaware of the recent feud between Peyton and Brooke.

"What's the matter boys? Cat got your tongues…or should I say Peyton?"

"Oh my God, Nathan. What happened to your eye?" Bevin asked.

Brooke then noticed Lucas's lip. Her gaze went back and forth between the two boys. "Let me guess…you two were fought about, oh what a surprise, Peyton again," She shook her head and smirk, "You know guys, I'll let you in a little secret. She's not worth it cause in the end she'll just stab you in the back. She's just a little…"

"Brooke, you better stop right there," Lucas finally said. He stood up from his seat and leaned over the rail to make sure Brooke heard him loud and clear, "If there's someone you want to be mad at, it's me. I'm the one who led you on and tried to use you. I'm the one who hurt you. Don't take it out on Peyton,"

"Oh, please," Brooke rolled her eyes, "Don't be so conceited Lucas. Not everything is about you,"

"Then what is it Brooke? What is it that Peyton did to deserve the way you've been treating her?" Lucas gave Brooke a moment to answer but she didn't reply. "You know what? I don't care anymore," Lucas stepped aside and pushed his chair in, "I'll let you in a little secret," he mocked, "You're the one losing out on a good friend. I don't know why she bothers with you when all you do it is just treat her like crap,"

Lucas pulled out his wallet and threw money on the table to cover the drinks he and Peyton had ordered. "If you keep pushing her away, one day when you really need her, it'll be too late," before walking away, Lucas looked at Nathan and Jake, "Sorry guys, I guess we'll do lunch another time,"

Brooke watched Lucas head towards the doors. Just as he exited, he nearly bumped into a surprised Peyton who was just coming back from the bathroom. Brooke watched on as Lucas and Peyton gazed deep into each other eyes. His hand gently cupped her face, keeping her attention on him. Lucas was saying something in a soft whisper so that only Peyton could hear. Jealously, Brooke watched on as Peyton let a smile slip between her lips and nod her head excitedly.

She couldn't bear to watch anymore. But it wasn't because Peyton was happy. In fact, Brooke was happy for Peyton. Brooke wasn't the terrible person everyone thought she was. Deep down inside, all Brooke wanted was exactly the same thing that every other girl wanted; someone to fight for her; someone to protect her or defend her; someone to look at her as if she was the only one in the room; someone to simply love her. She wanted everything that Peyton had with Lucas.

Bevin, a romantic at heart, let out a sigh and a grin as she watched Lucas whisk Peyton away. She was too busy caught up in a fantasy of her own to notice Brooke walk away with tears stinging her eyes.

Jake, dumbfounded with what just happened, sat in his seat looking back and forth between Nathan and Bevin. He was hoping that someone would fill him in.

"Jake," Nathan finally said, "sorry, but I think I lost my appetite,"

It wasn't exactly what he wanted to hear, but he didn't exactly have a choice either because the next thing he knew, Nathan was long gone.

"Do I smell or something?" Jake wondered out loud.

Bevin got closer to Jake and sniffed, "Actually, you do smell kind of nice,"

Jake's eyes wandered over to Bevin. She had been so quiet he forgot she was still there. He shrugged it off as his stomach rumbled, "Want to join me for lunch then?"

* * *

"Hey," Nathan called out, "Wait up a second,"

Brooke spun around, "I'm sorry, you must have me confused for the curly blonde girl. Her name is Peyton,"

"I'm not confused, Brooke. I...I just wanted to see if you were ok,"

"Well, isn't that sweet," Brooke said sarcastically, "as you can see, I'm hunky dory…so now you can run along back to Peyton,"

"Can you stop with Peyton? Lucas loves her and she loves him. Why can't you just be happy for them?"

Brooke rolled her eyes, "Surprise, surprise, another Peyton-defender…"

"Look, can we just talk about it?"

"Don't bother, I've already heard enough from your brother," she turned back around and started to walk away when Nathan grabbed her arm.

"That's not what I want to talk about. I want to talk about what happened to us in California,"

Brooke scoffed and crossed her arms, "A week after we had sex…a week after you told me that you had to get back to Haley…a week after Haley left your sorry little ass…no thanks," She had been hurt by Nathan before and she was determined to prevent that from happening again.

"Brooke! That's not how it happened,"

"That's funny, cause that's how I remember it. You know what, I don't care how you remember it, but I am not going to be someone's second choice. I deserve better,"

"Is that why you were all over Feday the other day? I saw you two together,"

"What are you stalking me now?"

"What's going on between the two of you?"

"Wouldn't you like to know," Brooke said coyly.

Nathan's eyes narrowed, "Forget it. You know, I'm tired of playing games. I thought you were someone different," he angrily said before walking away.


	25. Chapter 25

Hope you like this chapter more...it's longer and has more LP!

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**Chapter 25**

Lucas pulled up to her house and turned the engine off. He looked over at her. Peyton was looking out her window, up at her house. She was staring at her bedroom window. It was also the only room in the house with the light on, which meant that Brooke was already home.

"Well, I guess this mean we don't get a night cap," Lucas joked.

Peyton turned and hit him on the shoulder. She then sighed and slumped back into her seat. "I'm tired of this, you know,"

He reached out and took her hand in his, "I know,"

"You know it's my house…it's my room. I should not be kicked out of my own room and I should have whoever I want over, whenever I want," she continued to rant.

"Does that mean I can come up?"

She thought about it for a moment, "I don't think it'd be a good idea…"

"Peyton, I was kidding…kinda," Lucas pulled Peyton over and wrapped his arms around her. "But do you have to go now?"

"I guess I can spare a few minutes,"

"Then I'll cherish every second,"

She smiled as he placed a kiss on her head, "I talked to Hales, the other day," he said.

"Yeah? How's she enjoying the rock-star life?" Peyton asked.

"She's loving every second of it. She's actually coming home next week for a few days. After their gig in Charlotte, they get a break,"

"Gig? Did you just say gig?" laughed Peyton.

"What's so funny?"

"First of all, it's just funny hearing you say it and secondly, Sheryl Crow does not do gigs...she 'tours',"

Lucas rolled his eyes, clearly uneducated about the proper lingo, "Whatever…anyways you were right,"

"About what?"

"The whole Nathan mess…she's happy. And had she stayed, Haley wouldn't be doing what she wanted the most. I finally get it now. And I know I said it before, but I'm really sorry. You were looking out for Haley. It's just that I thought that they loved each other,"

Peyton lifted her head to look it him, "They do love each other, Luke…they're just not _in love_ with each other anymore,"

Lucas nodded his head in agreement.

* * *

Without turning on any hall lights, Peyton walked up the stairs. She was about to walk into her father's room, where she had been staying since Brooke threw her out of her own room, when she heard Brooke crying. 

Peyton softly knocked on her bedroom door and peered in, "Brooke, are you ok?"

Brooke quickly wiped her tears and sat up from the bed. She kept her back to Peyton, "I'm fine,"

"Brooke…"

"I said, I'm fine. Now if you can just leave me alone, I'll be even finer,"

"Brooke, come on. I'm trying here. Can we at least just talk about this?"

"I have nothing to say to you, ex-best friend," Brooke emphasized the 'ex'.

"I'm still your best friend, Brooke,"

"Really?" Brooke whipped around, "If you were my best friend, then you wouldn't be out with Lucas all day now would you?"

"Unbelievable…you know what? I've had enough of this. No matter what I do or say, you're still going to blame me and Lucas for this…I'm tired of walking on eggshells around you, especially in my own house…I mean I can't bring whoever I want over and I can't even sleep in my own bed," Peyton's patience for Brooke's snide comments had worn thin. Although Peyton knew it was Brooke's way of protecting herself from getting hurt but a friend could only take so much. "So maybe you're right…maybe its better that we're not friends,"

Peyton's answer wasn't exactly what Brooke expected to hear.

Peyton continued through spilling tears, "But it's not what I want, Brooke," She couldn't give up that easily, "For the first time in a long time, Lucas actually makes me feel safe and he makes me happy but you…you have been there for me since we were kids. You were the one who was there for me when my mother died. You taught me how to put make up on…hell, you were the one who took me to get my first bra…"

The two old friends shared a small smile at the memory. A young Brooke Davis had walked in the lingerie store with such confidence while Peyton followed behind with an embarrassed red face. She tried to stick close to Brooke, who seemed to know exactly where to go.

"Brooke, you're my best friend…and I know you're hurting right now, but if you want me to choose between you and Lucas…then I'm sorry…because I can't…and I won't,"

Brooke crossed her arms across her chest. More then anything she wanted to talk to Peyton. She wanted to tell her what she was thinking. That she didn't want to lose her best friend. That she didn't want to be alone anymore. But nothing came out.

Peyton sighed. Her voice was calm, "I told you before…I will always be there for you Brooke,"

Peyton was half way out the door when she heard Brooke scramble off the bed, "Wait,"

Peyton turned around to see Brooke about to fall to pieces. She stood there alone in the room, unsure of what to do next. All her life, Brooke had never needed to ask Peyton to stay or for help because Peyton was always there for her and never had to be asked.

And this time, it wasn't going to be any different. Peyton hurried back into the room and threw her arms around her best friend. Immediately Brooke hung on to Peyton and let out her tears. "I'm sorry," Brooke said through her tears.

"Shhh," Peyton hushed through tears of her own.

After calming down a bit, Peyton and Brooke sat on the bed.

"P. Sawyer, I've been a horrible friend to you. I am totally happy for you and Lucas. This whole thing was never about you or Lucas…ok fine, so I was a little hurt that you never told me about Lucas…and that I had to make an ass out of myself throwing myself at him before I found out,"

"Brooke, it's alright,"

"It's just that I want what you have. When I see you and Lucas together, I see the way you look at each other…you don't even have to be touching or even close to each other and you just know that you guys are together…that's what I want,"

Peyton smiled at the comment. She had no idea that's how people on the outside saw her relationship with Lucas. "You will Brooke. The right guy is out there for you and you know, he may be closer than you think," Peyton shrugged.

The brunette rolled her eyes and scoffed, "No, I think I screwed that up too,"

"Alright, what'd you do this time?"

"You know, Aaron Feday?"

"No, Brooke you didn't? Feday? Aaron Feday?"

She was getting tired of hearing the name "Yes!"

"Why?"

"He was like the only single guy left…"

"Yeah, he's single…FOR A REASON!"

"Well, it's not like I slept with him…we just made out, a little,"

Peyton threw Brooke a look, daring her to tell the truth.

Her eyes rolled again, giving in, "Alright, a lot, but I never slept with him," Brooke leaned her head on Peyton's shoulder, "And Nathan saw us,"

Peyton closed her eyes. Brooke's situation was getting worse and worse.

"And I told Nathan I didn't want to be his second choice…"

"Brooke," Peyton interrupted, "you weren't Nathan's second choice,"

"But he left me and ran home to Haley. And when Haley left…"

"Haley left because Nathan told her he moved on,"

Brooke was silent for a moment, letting it all process. And then finally, "OOOOH," she finally got it. "Peyton, what am I going to do?"

"Well, for starters," Peyton put her arm around Brooke's shoulder, "WE," she emphasized 'we', "are going to get some ice cream to celebrate our friendship and then WE are going to drive you over to Nathan's to talk,"

"Talk? That's it, no scheme. No game plan?"

Peyton pulled Brooke off the bed, "Playing games is over rated…it's fun for a while but trust me, in the end someone always loses,"

"I'm glad I have you back, P. Sawyer,"

"I never left, B. Davis,"

* * *

The door finally opened. "You knocked this time," she said in surprise. 

"Yeah, I wasn't sure if Brooke…"

"She's cool now…we worked things out," Peyton smiled and pulled Lucas in to her home.

"Really?"

"Uh-huh," she shut the door and then faced Lucas.

"Is she…upstairs?"

"Nope," she smiled.

Lucas took a step closer to Peyton, "Is she in the kitchen?"

"Uh-uh…She's at Nathan's trying to work things out, which means," her arms wrapped around Lucas's neck, "we have the whole house to ourselves,"

Lucas held her waist and pulled her closer, "Good, it's about time,"

Their lips met gently in the middle. It started off with slow, soft kisses that soon escalated into passionate and hungry kisses. As her hands ruffled through the back of his hair, she started to walk backwards, pulling him along with her. When her back hit the wall, Peyton shuffled to the side, keeping her attention on his lips, until she found the doorway to the living room where she began walking backwards again.

Lucas, on the other hand, had another idea in mind. His hands that roamed along the small of her back tugged her into the other direction – towards the stairs.

* * *

It was a clear night and the stars danced about the night sky as Brooke sat alone on the bench by the basketball hoop on the Scott's property. When Deb had answered the door, she asked Brooke to come inside, but Brooke politely declined and asked to wait outside. She wasn't exactly sure how Nathan would react and didn't exactly want and audience either. 

"Hey," Nathan said as he emerged from the front of the house, "My mom said you wanted to talk,"

Brooke looked up, "Yeah…um, you want to sit?"

Nathan hesitated for a second before walked over to the bench. He sat down, making sure that there was enough space between them.

"So?" Nathan waited for Brooke to explain why she was there.

It wasn't exactly easy for Brooke open up. Every thought that came to mind didn't seem like the right thing to say. She silently cursed Peyton in her head for not having a game plan.

"Look, if you have something to say, then just say it Brooke. I don't have all…"

"I want to be with you Nathan," she blurted out.

They both shared a shocked expression. Brooke couldn't believe how the words slipped out her mouth while Nathan was surprised to hear Brooke say it.

Brooke shrugged and tried to make light of her sudden straightforwardness, "Well, you said you were tired of playing games,"

Nathan let out a small laugh and nodded.

Her nerves began to build and when she was nervous, Brooke Davis rambled, "Look, I may not be Haley or Peyton or know how to deal with relationships but I know that I want the same things that they want….when it all comes down to it, I'm just a girl who wants to find that boy who loves her for just who she is…who is willing to look past her mistakes, cause we all know I make a lot of them, and just forgive her. I want someone who just wants to be with me for no reason at all,"

Nathan's smile disappeared from his face as he listened intently to Brooke. His eyes were fixed on hers as she shifted over closer towards him, "Nathan, I made a mistake with you. I thought you went back to Haley and I felt so hurt…"

"Brooke, I only wanted to tell Haley that it was over because she deserved to know the truth about how I felt…I had to end things before you and I could have a clean slate to build on,"

"I know that now but the thing is…I'm scared too," she admitted, "And that's why it's so hard for me to open up and trust someone with my feelings. Because it's like when I do, I always end up getting hurt," As a tear escaped from her eyes, Brooke looked down and away from him.

Nathan sighed. He reached out for Brooke's hand, "I can't promise you that you won't ever get hurt because with love…there just aren't any guarantees," Nathan leaned closer, trying to make some kind of eye contact with her. When he didn't he lifted her chin with his free hand and wiped away her fallen tears. "But I can promise you that if you take that chance with us, you won't ever regret it. Somewhere over the summer, I fell for you Brooke and I want to be with you. The funny thing is I don't have a reason why I want to be with you…other than I just do,"

His lips were just centimeters away when he looked her right into her eyes and said, "No more games?"

"Are you sure you want that?" Brooke winked.

"Alright, let me rephrase that," His grin grew wide, "No more mind games?"

"No more mind games," she repeated.

Brooke smiled happily as she felt the butterflies flutter in her stomach. It was a feeling that she never wanted to forget either. Nervously, she leaned in and let him kiss her as she let herself fall for the first time.

* * *

Their hands intertwined as they lay comfortably side by side. Her head rested tenderly on his shoulder. She felt his free hand gently stroke the side of her waist, under her shirt. 

"You don't mind that we didn't go upstairs do you?" Peyton asked nervously. "I mean Brooke's been staying in my room and I've been staying in my dad's room…and well, you and me in my dad's bed…" she cringed.

"No, it's ok," Lucas laughed.

"Kay,"

Lucas thought for a second, "Wait, you don't think I wanted to go up stairs so that we could…"

"Have sex?" she finished for him. Peyton shrugged and sat up.

Lucas sat up and pulled his legs in and crossed them. Peyton leaned back onto the couch and hugged her knees. "What is it, Peyton?"

She shook her head, "Nothing. Just forget it, it was stupid,"

Lucas knew that there was more then what Peyton was letting on, "Hey, you can talk to me you know," he reminded her, trying to open her up, but not wanting to push her. He rested his arm along the back of the couch and let his fingers play with the curls behind her head.

"I don't know if I'm ready yet," Peyton admitted, "I mean I want to but…I just don't want to rush things between us," she eyed him nervously as she continued, "I just feel that every time I rush things, things just fall apart,"

Peyton wasn't just referring to her relationships with Nathan and Jake, but it was more with her relationship with Lucas in the past. They never actually dated or had sex and yet their relationship still managed to falter. And that's what scared her the most. They finally had what she always wanted and she didn't want to lose it.

"Peyt, I…I never expected to have sex tonight but at the same time, I'd be lying if I said I don't want to…but whether we do it tomorrow or months from now, it's going to happen because we're both ready. Peyton, I'm here with you because I want to be. I guess what I'm trying to say is; I'm not in a rush either. I don't mind taking things slow because I love what's happening to me right now,"

She shifted her body to face his and then let her head rest on his arm that was placed along the back of the couch. His answer put her mind at ease, "And exactly what is happening to you right now?" Peyton smiled, curious to hear his answer.

With his other hand, he gently stroked her cheek with the back of his index finger. His eyes never left hers. "I'm falling more and more in love with Peyton Sawyer,"


	26. Epilogue

Disclaimer: I do not own anything OTH related. There are a couple of lines in the dialogue that belongs to OTH.

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**Epilogue**

"_People have had fire rituals since the beginning of time. For some people it's witchcraft; for others, religion; but for us, it marks the beginning of our **senior **_**_year_**!" Brooke began her speech to kick off the party. A crowd, mixed with juniors and senior raised their cups and cheered just as Lucas and Peyton made their way to the front with Haley close behind. They had arrived just in time for the end of summer beach party to begin.

Brooke's eyes met Haley's for the first time that night.

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**Flashback**

"_Haley, that was amazing!" Peyton exclaimed as she hugged her rock star friend. _

"_We're so proud of you, Hales," Lucas added. _

"_Thanks, guys," Haley invited her two friend into her dressing room, "I'm glad you guys could make it,"_

"_We wouldn't miss it for the world," Lucas replied._

_The tour was in Charlotte for its final show for the summer. Haley had put a side tickets and backstage passes for her friends to watch her perform – it was also a way for Haley to hitch a ride back to Tree Hill. _

"_So only two of you guys came?" Haley asked, sounding disappointed. _

_Peyton and Lucas eyed each other for a second. Neither of them knew what to say about Nathan and Brooke but somebody had to tell her. Then at the same time they nodded their heads towards Haley, signaling each other to tell Haley. After glare from Peyton, Lucas finally caved in and turned to look at his best friend._

"_Not exactly…" Lucas began._

_It had been a month since Haley had last seen Nathan and it had been a month since he told her that he had met someone else. Although Haley had kept in touch with Lucas and Peyton, neither one of them had told her that the someone else Nathan had moved on with was Brooke. Nobody was sure of how Haley would handle the news. But since Nathan and Brooke were now an official couple, it was time for Haley to know the truth._

"_Ummm…Nathan and Brooke are here too…"_

_KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK_

_The sudden knocking on the door interuppted Lucas. _

**End Flashback

* * *

**

Brooke and Haley smiled at each other as Brooke continued with her speech, "I_ know we have to go back to school soon, but tonight, as long as __this fire burns, summer is still ours_!"Brooke then lowered her torch to the pile of wood, which was drenched in lighter fluid, and ignited the bonfire. As the fire lit with a roar, the rowdy teens cheered again. She then signaled Mouth, the DJ for the night, with a nod of the head to drop the first upbeat song of the night.

* * *

**Flashback**

"_So… Brooke, huh?" Haley in a calm but surprised voice. _

_Nathan and Haley were alone in her dressing room. Nathan had decided that it would be best for him to tell Haley about Brooke. Haley deserved at least that much. She leaned against her vanity table as she stood in front of Nathan. _

"_Yeah, who would have thought?" they laughed. "Are you mad?" Nathan finally asked._

_Haley smiled, "Honestly…no. I'm happy for you…for the both of you,"_

_ It was the truth. Deep down, they both knew it was over between them. Their lives had gone in separate directions and it didn't seem like there was a path leading them back. Or maybe there was and they just couldn't see it just yet. But whether or not if it was there, they would have to continue on their own separate journies first.   
_

"_Yeah?"_

"_Yeah…I'll admit it's a little surprising but I can see that you're happy…and if Brooke is responsible for it then…" Haley shrugged, unable to find the right words to finish her thought. She took a few steps towards Nathan, "Look, before this tour…when you told me you moved on, I was crushed…I thought we would have been able to work things out but after being on this tour…I wouldn't change a thing," _

"_You're a great person, Hales…I owe a lot to you, you know,"_

_Haley laughed modestly, "No you don't,"_

"_Yeah I do, Hales. You saw something in me when everyone else just saw a selfish jerk…and for some reason, you stood by me and brought the best out of me,"_

_Haley shook her head, "You wanted to change and you did. You did it yourself,"_

_Nathan chuckled, "Could you quit being so modest and just take the credit,"_

"_Alright…fine. I am the greatest person in the world," Haley joked._

_Laughing, Nathan pulled Haley into a hug, "I just want you to know that I don't regret we shared together," he whispered into her ear. _

"_Me too," she replied. _

"_I'll always love you, Haley,"_

_A tear slipped from her eye, "I love you, too,"_

**End Flashback

* * *

**

The five friends sat on a deserted part of the beach. Brooke, Nathan, Haley, Peyton and Lucas all sat in a line, facing the ocean. They were close enough to the actual party to see them but far enough to have their own private beach.

As Haley and Peyton laughed at a joke Lucas had just made, Brooke was whispering something into Nathan's ear when a voice from behind yelled, "So this is where the real party is,"

Each one of them turned their heads around to see who it was. They were pleasantly surprised, but happy to see a barefoot Jake walking towards them. Nathan and Brooke stood up and were the first to greet Jake.

"Glad you could make it man," Nathan said.

"Yeah, I had to put Jenny to sleep before I could get out," Jake explained his lateness.

"Well, we're umm…gonna go for a walk. Want to come?" Brooke asked.

Jake gave Nathan a questioning look.

Nathan innocently shrugged his shoulders.

"Nah…I think I'll stay and catch up here," Jake said.

"Suit yourself," Brooke said and she grabbed Nathan's hand, "See you guys later,"

Jake shook his head as he watched the two walk away. He then turned back to his remaining friends.

"Hey," Jake said when he finally saw Haley sitting beside Peyton.

"Hey," Haley smiled as she stood up. They stood there eyeing each other for a few second before Haley broke the silence, "So you miss my concert to take care of another girl and now you're just gonna stand there and not give me hug?" she joked.

Jake smiled as he walked towards her and gave her a hug.

"Long time no see," Haley said as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Yeah, too long," he whispered.

Lucas and Peyton smiled as they watched their friends flirt a bit.

Laughter and light conversations were shared between the four remaining friends. Jake was fascinated by some of Haley's tour stories. Although it wasn't the first time Peyton and Lucas had heard them, they didn't mind hearing them again. Jake on the other hand was excited for her.

"Ah, man… I can't believe I missed the concert," Jake apologized.

Haley waved a hand, "Don't worry about it. I'm just glad Jenny is feeling better…anyways I'm sure someone made a bootleg," she nudged Peyton.

Peyton grinned, but didn't fully admit about making the illegal recording.

Jake looked at his watch and cringed, "Speaking of Jenny...I'm sorry. I have to get going. I promised my parents I'd be home early tonight,"

As Jake stood up, Peyton elbowed Haley in the ribs, "Ow," Haley glared at Peyton who was wriggling her eyebrows up and down as her eyes darted back and forth between Haley and Jake.

Haley quickly caught the signal and smiled, "Um, Jake…do you mind walking me home?"

"No not at all," he smiled.

Lucas silently chuckled and shook his head and his girlfriend's meddling tactics.

"Bye, guys," Peyton called out with a big grin on her face.

Jake and Haley turned back and waved as they walked towards inland.

And just like the beginning of the summer, when everyone left, only two remained behind.

From the corner of her eyes, she saw Lucas moving around. She turned her head to see him dusting sand from his hands.

"Looks like it's just you and me," Lucas whispered. He then moved and scooted behind her. His arms wrapped around her and held her close with his chin resting on her shoulder.

Peyton smiled and looked at him. She leaned in for a kiss, "The way it's meant to be," Peyton replied as she leaned back into his chest.

And it was the truth. Even though everyone had come back, in the end, it would always be just Peyton and Lucas. Together they watched the ocean water crash along the shore line, like they did almost every summer night. Sitting in silience, the listened to calming ocean sounds. Both of them took a moment to remember everything that had happened that summer.

It had been a whirlwind of a summer for both Peyton Sawyer and Lucas Scott. It had been a summer of heartache; a summer of truths; a summer of love. It was a summer to remember.

* * *

This is it for this fic. It was fun writing it even though it was hard at some times. I also want to give a huge THANKS to everyone who read and especially to those who reviewed. I have a short Christmas fic that I'm working on right now...it's loosely based on "A Christmas Carol" I'm still working out a few plot lines, but it should be up in a few days. Anyways, thanks again and I hope you all like this story! 


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